Rural Nebraskans remain confident in their local institutions, poll shows

Rural Nebraskans’ confidence in educational and governmental institutions has changed little in the past eight years, according to the 2025 Nebraska Rural Poll. However, more respondents expressed strong confidence in the presidency and executive branch than they did in 2017 or 2021.

The proportion stating that they have a great deal of confidence in the executive branch increased from 11% in 2017 and 4% in 2021 to 17% this year, according to the survey results from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Rural Prosperity Nebraska and Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication. Twenty-one percent of respondents said they have quite a lot of confidence in the branch (from 24% in 2017 and 10% in 2021), 25% had some confidence (from 38% in 2017 and 20% in 2021) and 38% had very little (from 28% in 2017 and 67% in 2021). 

Fewer respondents expressed a great deal of confidence this year in public safety agencies in their communities (from 36% in 2021 to 25% this year) and public K-12 schools (from 23% in 2017 and 2021 to 17% this year).

“These shifts in confidence tell us people are watching national politics closely,” said Becky Vogt, survey manager for the poll. “But they also highlight the importance of strengthening the institutions that directly impact their daily lives at home in their rural communities.” 

Kristen Labadie | University Communication and Marketing

While confidence in some local institutions decreased from past surveys, more than half of rural Nebraskans surveyed still have quite a lot or a great deal of confidence in their community’s public safety agencies (68%), public libraries (68%), community colleges (62%), county voting and election systems (58%), K-12 public schools (56%), and public four-year colleges and universities (51%).

Meanwhile, respondents said they have little confidence in the U.S. House of Representatives (42%), U.S. Senate (42%), and voting and election systems across the nation (33%).

“While trust is decreasing, the data show that rural Nebraskans continue to place the most trust in the institutions closest to their daily lives — their schools, their libraries, their local safety agencies,” said L.J. McElravy, associate professor of agricultural leadership and a poll team member. “At the same time, the low levels of confidence in national institutions highlight a disconnect between rural communities and federal leadership.”

Confidence in some institutions differs across the state. For example, poll respondents in the Panhandle were least likely to have confidence in the governor and state executive branch, with only 13% reporting confidence and 40% saying they have very little confidence, compared to at least a quarter of residents in the other regions of the state reporting such confidence.

In addition, older rural Nebraskans were more likely to express confidence in many of the institutions listed. In particular, nearly 80% of respondents 65 and older have quite a lot or a great deal of confidence in public safety agencies in their community, compared to half of those 19 to 29.

“We’re seeing that confidence isn’t evenly spread across rural Nebraska — by geography or generation,” said Cheryl Burkhart-Kriesel, a Rural Prosperity Nebraska extension specialist who works in the Panhandle. “These differences imply that building trust is a multi-faceted effort — it must address regional perspectives and generational priorities.”

The “Confidence in Institutions” report and its implications for rural Nebraska will be highlighted during a Rural Poll webinar at noon Sept. 25. McElravy will lead the discussion with special guests from Civic Nebraska. Register here.

The 2025 Nebraska Rural Poll marks the 30th year of tracking rural Nebraskans’ perceptions about policy and quality of life, making it the largest and longest-running poll of its kind. This summer, questionnaires were mailed to more than 6,700 Nebraska households, with 943 households from 86 of the state’s 93 counties responding. The poll carries a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3%. Conducted by Rural Prosperity Nebraska with funding from Nebraska Extension, the Rural Poll provides three decades of data on the voices of rural Nebraskans. Current and past reports are available here.