Majority of Kenyans have no faith in Ruto, police and other key institutions -TIFA
The findings are drawn from a nationally representative survey conducted between May 2 and 11, 2026, with a sample size of 2,013 respondents drawn across.
President William Ruto speaks during a past event. (Photo: PCS)
The majority of Kenyans have little or no trust in key national institutions, including the Presidency, Parliament, the National Police Service, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and the Judiciary, a new TIFA survey shows.
The report released on Thursday shows that Parliament leads in distrust, with most institutions recording higher negative ratings than positive trust, pointing to rising public scepticism toward governance and leadership in the country.
"Public confidence remains weak across all major institutions, with widespread doubt about effectiveness, accountability and service delivery," reads the report.
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The findings are drawn from a nationally representative survey conducted between May 2 and 11, 2026, with a sample size of 2,013 respondents drawn across all 47 counties.
The results show that in all institutions assessed, negative trust outweighed positive trust, meaning more Kenyans reported having “very little” or “no trust at all” compared to those expressing “a lot” or “some trust”.
Parliament recorded the worst performance, with 27 per cent expressing positive trust and 72 per cent expressing negative trust, giving it a net trust rating of minus 45 per cent.
The National Police Service followed with 29 per cent positive trust and 69 per cent negative trust, translating to minus 40 per cent. President William Ruto also recorded 29 per cent positive trust against 68 per cent negative trust, while political parties registered the same pattern at 29 per cent and 68 per cent respectively, both with a net rating of minus 39 per cent.
County government leadership recorded 31 per cent positive trust and 67 per cent negative trust, giving a net score of minus 36 per cent. The IEBC followed closely with 30 per cent positive trust and 66 per cent negative trust, also at minus 36 per cent.
The Judiciary performed slightly better than the rest, with 36 per cent positive trust and 60 per cent negative trust, resulting in a net trust rating of minus 24 per cent.
The survey further shows that no institution received strong public confidence, with only about one-tenth of respondents giving the highest trust rating of “a lot” to any institution. This included 11 per cent for both the Judiciary and the President, and 10 per cent for the IEBC.
At the lower end, the highest levels of outright rejection, where respondents said they had “no trust at all”, were recorded for the President and the Police at 45 per cent each, followed by Parliament at 42 per cent and the IEBC at 41 per cent.
The report also highlights sharp differences in trust levels based on political alignment with the Broad-Based Government. Among supporters of the arrangement, 22 per cent expressed “a lot of trust” in the President compared to 6 per cent among opponents. For the Judiciary, the figures stood at 11 per cent versus 5 per cent.
The gap was more pronounced for the IEBC, where 19 per cent of supporters expressed “a lot of trust” compared to 6 per cent of opponents.
Political parties showed a smaller divide, at 9 per cent versus 6 per cent. Police trust also varied, with 14 per cent of supporters giving the highest trust rating compared to 5 per cent of opponents, while county government leadership showed a narrower difference.
On performance across policy areas under the Broad-Based Government, no sector received strong approval. Political stability and reduction of tensions recorded the highest positive rating at 25 per cent.
However, negative ratings dominated in most areas, including basic freedoms at 51 per cent, education at 52 per cent, security and crime prevention at 55 per cent, medical services at 56 per cent, and taxation at 74 per cent.