Over 70 pct of Australians say country more divided than 12 months ago: survey

A survey found that almost three-quarters of Australians believe the country is more divided than it was a year ago.



According to the survey, conducted by independent think tank McKinnon, 41.9 percent of Australians strongly agree the country is more divided than 12 months ago, and another 32.5 percent said they somewhat agree.



The proportion of respondents who said they were either very or somewhat satisfied with the way Australia is heading declined from 28.8 percent in 2025 to 26.1 percent in 2026, while the proportion of those who said they are very dissatisfied rose by 7.2 percentage points.



The survey, which was conducted in June and July, polled over 4,000 people on their views about the Australian political system, leaders and institutions.



It found that 30.5 percent of respondents said they have a high degree of trust in federal politicians, down from 35.9 percent in 2025, while the proportion who said they have a high degree of trust in political parties fell from 31.2 percent to 24.4 percent.



Satisfaction with democracy is 59 percent among Australians with a university degree or higher. Among Australians whose highest qualification is high school or below, it is just 39.7 percent."