MPPS Policy Brief: Michigan local leaders report increased confidence in local democracy
Since 2020, the Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS) has asked local government leaders across the state for their assessments of American democracy as a system of government, based on factors like free and fair elections, rule of law, an unbiased free press, ethical and transparent governance, an informed and engaged electorate, and more. Local officials evaluate the functioning of democracy on a 10-point scale—with 1 as a total breakdown of democracy and 10 as a perfectly functioning democracy—for the United States overall, for the state of Michigan overall, and for their own jurisdiction. This report summarizes responses from local government leaders in the spring 2026 survey wave, and includes comparisons from 2020-2025.
Key findings
- This year, 85% of Michigan local officials report that democracy is functioning well in their communities, up from 82% in 2025 and a low of 79% in 2024.
- Confidence in local democracy increased across the partisan spectrum this year. The largest increase is among Democrats (from 83% in 2025 to 89% in 2026), but assessments have also risen for Republicans (from 83% to 85%), Independents (from 81% to 83%), and officials who declined to report a partisan affiliation (from 76% to 80%).
- Local officials' assessments of democracy at the state level are significantly lower, and remain mostly unchanged, if not slightly worse, compared to 2025. While one-third of local officials (33%) say democracy is functioning well at the state level, nearly as many (29%) say it is functioning poorly, indicating less consensus about state-level democracy than about local democracy