An estimated 19 percent of the population of the United States trusts its federal government, a Pew Research Center poll suggested on Monday less than a year ahead of a US presidential election.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) –Confidence in the US government hit its lowest point of 15 percent in early October 2011.

“Currently, just 19 percent say they can trust the government always or most of the time,” the 6,000-person survey stated.

Poverty, immigration and elderly income are key areas where less than half of respondents evaluated Washington’s performance as “good.”

The survey reflected a deep partisan divide in the United States, marking the Republican Party’s consistent opposition to every policy recommendation of US President Barack Obama.

“In Barack Obama’s six years as president, 13 percent of Republicans, on average, have said they can trust the government always or most of the time – the lowest level of average trust among either party during any administration dating back 40 years,” the poll said.

The August 27-October 4 survey was conducted against a backdrop of perceived support for inexperienced or controversial Republican candidates in the ongoing presidential campaign, as evidenced by leading poll positions maintained by reality television personality Donald Trump and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson.

Voters in the United States are scheduled to elect their next president on November 8, 2016.