WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans are exceptionally anxious about their political system, according to new international polling from Gallup, a situation that sets the country apart from other rich and powerful nations.
About one-third of Americans rated politics and government as the top issue facing their nation, behind only Taiwan — which faces the prospect of an invasion from China — and on par with Slovenia, Spain and South Korea.
The United States also stands out for the anxiety its younger residents have over economic issues, with younger Americans more likely than young adults in many of the other 107 surveyed countries to say affordability and other pocketbook issues are worrying them
Wealthier countries are more likely to list politics and government as a top issue, as are democracies. But the U.S. stands out as a country that’s particularly concerned about the stability of its democratic system and whether it’s still possible to get ahead economically, said Benedict Vigers of Gallup.
“It’s really unique in that regard,” Vigers said of the United States’ position in the survey, which was conducted from March to October of 2025.
The finding comes after decades of partisan polarization in the United States that culminated in the rise of President Donald Trump, the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, the largely unsuccessful efforts to prosecute Trump during the administration of President Joe Biden and Trump’s return to office raising new questions about the country’s political and constitutional guardrails.
It’s the latest of a wide range of surveys showing international andAmerican anxiety about the economy and democratic governance. Economic anxiety is closely linked to the health of democratic systems, according to Brendan Nyhan, a Dartmouth political scientist.
“A world where people aren’t optimistic about their economic futures is one in which they’re willing to destabilize institutions even further,” Nyhan said.
FILE – A customer shops at the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke).
Younger Americans worry about the country’s economic future
The United States is among several high-income nations where younger people are unusually likely to prioritize economic issues.
Those 35 and under are most likely to list economic issues — including the affordability of food and shelter — as a top issue, while older Americans are far more likely to cite politics. About one-third of American young people in the poll cited economics and affordability as a top issue compared to only 13% of those 55 and older.
That’s a version of heightened concern about affordability among young people seen in other rich countries worldwide, including in places like Australia, Canada and Ireland. All three countries, like the United States, are suffering from a housing affordability crisis and saw younger citizens rank the issue as more pressing than older ones.
“It’s a literally concrete example of young people being locked out of economic progress,” Vigers said.
The survey found that even those in some wealthier countries worry about affordability and economic issues at similar rates as those in some African countries. For example, 57% of adults in Ireland cite economics or affordability as a top issue, with countries like Nigeria, Zambia, Egypt and Albania being in the same league.
The housing affordability crisis has been particularly acute in the English-speaking world, and the only other high-income countries with similar levels of concern as Ireland over the economy and affordability among younger residents were Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and New Zealand.
Other wealthy countries, like France and Germany, did not see similar affordability concerns or age gaps.
Older Americans are concerned about politics and governance
While younger Americans focus on the economy, older Americans are more concerned about politics and government. About 4 in 10 Americans ages 35 and older said politics and government were the most important problem facing the country, compared to only about 2 in 10 younger Americans.
Gallup for decades has tracked what Americans rank as the top issue for the U.S., and occasionally, politics and government spiked during national scandals like Watergate. But since 2000, the importance of the issue has gradually climbed over time to the point that, since 2016, it’s ranked near or above Watergate levels.
“It’s all mixed up with polarization,” said Gallup’s Frank Newport in an interview, noting that the issue rises among one of the two major parties when the other one is in power. He added that the domestic survey also found older people are more likely to rank politics and government as a top issue.
The Capitol is seen after a recent snow storm, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
The United States also has among the widest splits between people who trust many of its institutions — including the national government, the judicial system and election integrity, among others — and those who do not. The distrustful are far more likely to list politics and government as the top issue — 41% of them did — than those who trust many of the country’s establishments, where only 21% ranked politics as the top issue.
Nyhan, the political scientist, said that low trust can be toxic in democracies.
“Having a stable society and rule of law without social trust is really difficult,” Nyhan said. “Low trust is corrosive. Under conditions of high polarization, it makes it exceptionally difficult to accept losing an election and accept the other party being in power.”
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Riccardi reported from Denver.
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The Gallup World poll was conducted among people aged 15 and older in 107 countries between March and October 2025. The margin of sampling error ranges from plus or minus 2.4 to 4.7 percentage points.
