FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 8, 2026

PRESS CONTACT:
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Navigator Research’s latest national survey found that corruption remains a top-five priority for Americans, with 32% saying it is among the issues they most want the president and Congress to address. But Americans do not all mean the same thing when they talk about corruption: Democrats are most likely to point to special treatment for wealthy donors and large corporations, while Republicans are more likely to define corruption as waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars.

As reported in HuffPost, this report highlighted the dramatic shift from the start of Trump’s presidency, when the portion of voters who thought Trump was causing corruption in Navigator’s polling was just 2 percentage points greater than the chunk who believed he was fixing it.

“This is a big, big change,” said Tina Tang, Director of Polling and Analytics at Navigator Research to HuffPost. “People are feeling Trump is bringing more corruption, and that feeling is widespread across demographics and across partisanship.”

“Americans may disagree about exactly what corruption looks like, but there is broad agreement that our political system is not working as it should,” said Melissa Toufanian, Managing Director at Navigator Research. “And the promise to ‘drain the swamp’ has not translated into greater confidence that Washington is becoming less corrupt, but rather quite the opposite.”

Chart from Navigator Research: Growing Shares Say Trump & GOP Are More Corrupt Than Democrats; Even More Corrupt When Trump Is Included

Americans increasingly see Trump as bringing more corruption to Washington:

  • 60% say President Trump is bringing more corruption to Washington, compared with 40% who say he is fixing it.
  • In February 2025, Americans were nearly split: 51% said Trump was bringing more corruption to Washington, while 49% said he was fixing it.
  • 71% of independents and 72% of Trump regretters say Trump is bringing more corruption to Washington.
  • 92% of Democrats say Trump is bringing more corruption to Washington.

Corruption is a top-five priority for Americans:

  • 32% say corruption in government is among the issues they want the president and Congress to focus on.
  • Americans say they want Washington to focus most on inflation and the cost of living (60%), jobs and the economy (46%), health care (42%), Social Security and Medicare (37%), and corruption in government (32%).

Americans define corruption differently depending on their politics:

  • Among those who prioritize corruption:
    • 26% define it as elected officials engaging in lies and crimes.
    • 25% define it as the actions of Trump and Republicans.
    • 19% define it as elected officials getting rich while in office.
    • 43% of Democrats define corruption as giving wealthy donors and large corporations special treatment from government.
    • 45% of Republicans define corruption as allowing waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars.
    • Independents are more divided: 33% point to special treatment for wealthy donors and corporations, while 29% point to waste, fraud and abuse.

Americans broadly see corruption as widespread:

  • 88% say many or nearly all elected officials are corrupt.
  • 40% of independents say nearly all elected officials are corrupt, compared with 32% of Democrats and 31% of Republicans.
  • Americans are more likely to identify Republicans than Democrats as engaging in a range of corrupt behaviors, including giving wealthy donors special treatment, protecting monopolies, and allowing companies to price gouge Americans.

Americans see Trump and Republicans as more corrupt:

  • 46% say the Republican Party is more corrupt than the Democratic Party, compared with 34% who say the Democratic Party is more corrupt.
  • When President Trump is included with Republicans, 51% say Trump and the Republican Party are more corrupt, compared with 32% who say Democrats are more corrupt.
  • 71% of Black Americans and 65% of Latino Americans say Trump and Republicans are more corrupt, compared with 46% of white Americans.

Americans are split on which party they trust to take on corruption:

  • 35% trust Democrats to handle corruption.
  • 33% trust Republicans.
  • 32% trust neither party or are unsure.

Americans see the political system, Congress, and presidency as the most broken:

  • 58% say the political system is broken.
  • 53% say Congress is broken.
  • 52% say the presidency is broken.
  • 59% say the political system needs major changes.
  • 17% say the political system should be torn down completely.
  • 65% of Americans ages 18-34 say the political system is broken, compared with 55% of those ages 35-54 and 56% of those 55 and older.

Americans see the economy as deeply in need of change, too:

  • 74% say the economy needs either major changes or should be torn down completely.
  • Independents are especially likely to say the economy needs major changes, at 57%.
  • Americans are less likely to view Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, SNAP, and the election system as broken or in need of major changes.

Read the full report here, and survey toplines here. If you are interested in speaking with any of our experts, or learning more about Navigator Research, please contact press@navigatorresearch.org.

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About Navigator Research

The Navigator Research project is designed to act as a consistent, flexible, responsive tool to inform policy debates. By conducting research and providing reliable guidance to inform allies, elected leaders, and the press, Navigator helps top leaders in Washington and grassroots leaders around the country shape the debate on the issues that matter most. Follow us on Twitter for the latest updates.