75% of Americans Say Government Corruption is Widespread

A new poll shows that 75 % of U.S. adults believe that corruption is "widespread" throughout the government.

The number of adults who view the U.S. government as corrupt has consistently hovered around 75 % since 2010, according to data collected by Gallup, a well-respected polling organization. This year's figure of 75 % is actually a decline from when 79 % of adults believed the U.S. government was corrupt in 2013.

Gallup says that for the last decade, more than half of U.S. adults have said they believe the government is corrupt. The lowest level of perceived corruption since 2007 took place in 2009, when 66 % of poll respondents said they believed government corruption was widespread.

The United States falls just outside of the top 10 for populations that believe their country is corrupt, coming in at number 13. Lithuania and Portugal are at the top of the list, with 90% and 86% saying their government is corrupt, respectively. At the other end of the spectrum is Sweden and Denmark. Only 14% of Swedes think their government is corrupt, while 19% of Danes believe their government is corrupt.

The survey was conducted via phone interview with 1,000 adults 15 years-old or older every year between 2007 and 2014. The margin of error was +/- 4% and the organization has 95% confidence in its findings.