THE FRANK CHURCH INSTITUTE
The Frank Church Institute was established in 1982 to honor the achievements and to carry forward the principles of one of Idaho’s most distinguished public servants, Senator Frank Church.
Housed within the School of Public Service at Boise State University, the Institute promotes the ideals the Senator held dear, a strong belief in the rule of law, rugged debate and cross-partisanship, and an unwavering devotion to protecting democracy at home and abroad.
Preserve, Promote, Protect Democracy
History In Pictures
Time for a new Church committee?
The newly elected Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 118th Congress has called for a Select Subcommittee to broadly investigate the federal government. Many, including the Speaker, are calling the committee the Church Committee 2.0. Hear what those closest to the late Senator are saying about the comparison.
Survey of the Mountain West
A large bi-partisan majority of Americans in a five-state swath of the Mountain West are on edge about the health of democracy in the U.S. (85%) and yet two-thirds of them believe politicians should find common ground rather than just stand their ground. Those are the headline findings from groundbreaking research released by the Frank Church Institute at Boise State.
Other themes from current events that emerged from the polling data include:
- A serious lack of trust in the federal government, much less so for local and state government
- An overwhelming concern about misinformation and its spread on social media, a subject of increased scrutiny in Congress
- A strong sense that Americans in rural communities feel left out of policy that affects them in their everyday life
- Who to blame for violent protests that laid siege to the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021
- Though a majority back the ballot rather than violence, a concerning 1 in 5 believe that violence can be justified
Working with Boise State University’s Idaho Policy Institute, the Frank Church Institute commissioned a leading Washington, D.C.-based research firm, Morning Consult, to gather public opinions of approximately 1,900 adults in Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming in the fall of 2021.
Read the Survey of the Mountain West