Most Kenyans report very little or no trust in key state institutions, including the President, the Police Service, and Parliament, according to a new survey released by Trends and Insights for Africa on June 4, 2026.
The findings point to widespread public scepticism toward leadership and governance structures, with negative trust ratings outweighing positive sentiment across nearly all institutions assessed.
“Public confidence remains weak, with negative trust ratings outweighing positive sentiment across all institutions, suggesting widespread skepticism toward leadership, governance structures, and public institutions,” the report states.
The survey shows that no more than about one-tenth of respondents gave the highest level of trust (“a lot”) to any of the institutions or leaders included in the study.
The Judiciary and the President each received 11 percent at the highest trust level, while the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) received 10 percent.
At the opposite end of the scale, the lowest trust rating (“none at all”) was recorded at 45 percent for both the President and the Police Service, while Parliament stood at 42 percent and the IEBC at 41 percent.
TIFA notes that for all institutions measured, combined negative ratings (“very little” and “none at all”) consistently exceeded combined positive ratings (“some” and “a lot”), indicating a deep and broad-based trust deficit.
The report further shows that perceptions of institutions are strongly shaped by political alignment, particularly views on the Broad-Based Government (BBG).
For instance, “a lot of trust” in the President is nearly four times higher among BBG supporters compared to opponents (22 percent versus 6 percent). A similar gap is observed in the Judiciary, though at a lower level (11 percent versus 5 percent).
Polarisation is even more pronounced in relation to the IEBC, where BBG supporters are three times more likely to express high trust than opponents (19 percent versus 6 percent). The difference is smaller in relation to political parties, where the gap stands at 9 percent versus 6 percent.
According to TIFA, trust in the Police Service also reflects similar divisions, with BBG supporters more than twice as likely to express high trust compared to opponents (14 percent versus 5 percent).
Beyond institutional trust, the survey also assessed public views on government performance across nine policy areas.
In none of the areas did positive ratings exceed one-quarter of respondents. The highest-rated area was political stability and reduction of political tensions at 25 percent, while taxation recorded the lowest positive rating at just 7 percent.
Negative assessments dominated in five key areas, including basic freedoms (51 percent), education (52 percent), security and crime prevention (55 percent), medical services (56 percent), and taxation (74 percent).
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