In spite of more public awareness about federal workforce cuts’ impacts, opposition to them hasn’t grown, survey suggests

Government Executive ^ | 11/19/25 | Sean Michael Newhouse

[cotton1706]

More Americans report seeing the impacts of President Donald Trump’s cuts to federal programs and the government workforce, according to new survey data released Monday by the Partnership for Public Service. Despite the additional respondents noticing the effects of these reductions, however, the share of individuals supporting or opposing the administration’s overhauls has hardly changed over the past six months.

The nonpartisan good government nonprofit found in a fall survey that 46% of respondents said they know someone who has been affected by the federal cuts while 48% did not. In comparison, when the Partnership polled this question in March, only 29% reported they knew an impacted individual and 64% said they didn’t know of anybody.

“The fact that about half the country says they are noticing the impact suggests the issue is not just an inside-the-Beltway story,” the researchers wrote. “Rather, people around the country see how such changes are affecting their communities and lives. Because the reductions and changes to federal personnel and funding are ongoing, the full effects of these actions may not be known for a long time.”

The survey of 1,000 U.S. adults was conducted between Sept. 12 and 15. While it did not rely on a random, nationally representative sample, the Partnership said that it used “quota sampling techniques to resemble the demographic makeup of the U.S.”

Additionally, Democrats are more likely than Republicans to know someone impacted by the federal cuts, but the share of Democrats and Republicans who know such an individual has increased similarly since the spring.

[cotton1706]

The pro-government worker propaganda hasn't had much effect.

[Opinionated Blowhard]

Despite the additional respondents noticing the effects of these reductions, however, the share of individuals supporting or opposing the administration’s overhauls has hardly changed over the past six months.

I wonder if it ever dawned on these dummies that people are seeing a change for the better as a result of government cuts. That's why there's no protests against the cuts. LOL.

[Cincinnatus.45-70]

Paying a lot of government workers in useless or harmful programs is like paying for refrigeration to keep cow manure fresh, isn’t it?

[Resolute Conservative]

1,000 surveyed out of 300 million or more, not sure about the accuracy here...

[Seruzawa]

We all have direct experience with these lazy rude arrogant jerks.

[VanShuyten]

I think the last straw was the government shutdown. The government was closed, and with a few exceptions, nobody noticed.