Sixty-two percent of Americans now believe the federal government holds too much power the highest level recorded by Gallup since it began tracking the question in 2002. The surge, which marks a sharp 11-point jump from just one year ago, reflects a dramatic realignment in political sentiment: for the first time in nearly two decades, Democrats are more likely than Republicans to voice concern about governmental overreach. According to Gallup’s latest poll, 66% of Democrats (and Democratic-leaning independents) say the government is too powerful, up from just 25% in 2024. Meanwhile, Republican concern has dipped to 58%, down from 75% last year. This reversal coincides with the early months of Donald Trump’s second term, during which his administration has issued a record number of executive orders, deployed military forces domestically, and unilaterally imposed sweeping tariffs. The data reveals not just policy disagreement, but a deeper anxiety about the concentration of authority in a single office. Government Overreach is no longer a partisan talking point it’s a shared, if inverted, national preoccupation.
This marks the first time since 2003–2007 during the George W. Bush administration that Democrats have expressed greater skepticism of federal power than Republicans. Back then, Democratic unease stemmed from post-9/11 surveillance expansions and the Iraq War. Today’s shift is far more abrupt and intense. While Democrats showed modest concern during Trump’s first term (44–50%), their current alarm is unprecedented in both scale and speed. “It’s not just opposition to policy it’s fear of unchecked authority,” said Dr. Lena Cho, a political psychologist at Georgetown University. “When the same party that once defended executive action now calls it authoritarian, something fundamental has shifted.” The Gallup Poll Data captures a nation in ideological flux, where loyalty to party is increasingly strained by loyalty to principle or fear.
Interestingly, while views on government *power* have swung dramatically, opinions on whether the government is *doing too much* remain relatively stable. Fifty-one percent say the federal government is overreaching into areas better left to individuals and businesses a figure close to the long-term average. Democrats’ stance here has barely moved, with only 34% saying the government does too much, compared to 74% of Republicans. This suggests a nuanced distinction in public thinking: Americans may accept an active government during crises (as seen in 1992, 2001, and 2020), but they recoil when that activity feels unilateral or unaccountable. The current crisis isn’t about scope it’s about consent. Executive Authority has become the lightning rod, not social programs or economic intervention.
The shift is especially pronounced among younger Democrats and independents, many of whom came of age during the Obama and Biden years and viewed executive action as a tool for progress. Now, faced with the same mechanisms used in ways they find alarming, they’re reevaluating the very structure of presidential power. Campus groups and civic organizations are launching nonpartisan campaigns calling for legislative checks, sunset clauses on emergency powers, and greater congressional oversight. This Youth Initiative isn’t about left or right it’s about balance. “Power isn’t bad,” said Marcus Lin, 23, a law student in Chicago. “But permanent power without accountability? That’s how democracies erode.”
Gallup’s findings serve as more than a snapshot they’re a stress test for American democracy. When both major parties, in alternating cycles, come to fear the same institution they once championed, it signals a systemic vulnerability. The presidency, designed as a unitary executive for efficiency, now risks becoming a symbol of instability. Yet within this anxiety lies a quiet consensus: power must be bounded, not just by law, but by the enduring will of a watchful public. The challenge ahead isn’t partisan it’s constitutional. And it belongs to everyone. Democracy Demands Vigilance From All Sides.
Since 9/11, Americans have oscillated between trusting government in crisis and distrusting it in calm. But the current moment is different: distrust is rising *during* a period of active governance, not after. The 62% who say the government has too much power aren’t just reacting to policy they’re reacting to process. And their message is clear: no leader, regardless of party, should wield authority without restraint. In a polarized age, that may be the last truly shared American value. Power Without Limits Is Power Without Legitimacy.
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