Illinois residents have the least amount of confidence in their state government out of the nation, according to a poll released by Gallup Wednesday.
Of those living in the Prairie State, 25 percent trust their “government in general,” while 74 percent believe their politicians are not capable of handling state issues. The polling organization attributes the results to the state’s history of corruption — several of its politicians having been involved in criminal activity.
Other states known for unethical politics also rank poorly in terms of confidence, with Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey and Louisiana trailing closely behind Illinois. While states like North Dakota (81 percent), Wyoming (76 percent), Nebraska (74 percent), Montana (72 percent) and South Dakota (71 percent) received high marks.
“Corruption and challenging economic times likely contribute to other states ranking among the least confident in their government. Louisiana, like Illinois, is renowned for corruption in politics, and many of the other lower-confidence states have had high-ranking elected officials convicted of crimes in recent years,” the findings read.
Source: Gallup
States with struggling economies also received low marks according to a separate survey conducted, which shows Illinois ranked lowest in Gallup’s state economic confidence index, with a -22 score. West Virginia (-14), Connecticut (-11), Rhode Island (-6) and New Jersey (-5) followed suit.
“Corruption and challenging economic times likely contribute to other states ranking among the least confident in their government. Louisiana, like Illinois, is renowned for corruption in politics, and many of the other lower-confidence states have had high-ranking elected officials convicted of crimes in recent years,” the findings read.
The survey found politics have little to do with trust in government.
“The Illinois budget impasse is an example of the political gridlock that can ensue when states have a governor and legislature of opposing political parties that fail to find common ground on pressing state issues,” the survey reads. “In general, however, divided party government or unified party government has little relation to confidence in state government”
States with Republican governors had a slight confidence advantage over Democratic-run states, at 58 percent and 55 percent respectively.
The Wednesday survey was conducted out of 500 telephone interviews across the country, and leaves a margin of error of plus or minus six.
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