Population confidence in federal entities’ governance to face the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil and its associated factors: Evidence from the Social Thermometer Project – COVID-19

Background: The crisis brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic brought a great connection with the population's level of trust in the governance of federative entities, in the intention of feeling supported and protected, whether at an individual or collective level. Here, we aimed to investigate the level of confidence of the Brazilian population in the governance of federative entities to combat COVID-19 and its associated factors. Methods A cross-sectional survey was developed, applied to the general Brazilian population, with a validated instrument, and a hybrid application online and in the field. Convenience sampling was used for recruitment using the snowball technique. Multinomial logistic regression was applied. Results The sample included 1,018 participants, with a mean age of 46.1 years, the majority being female (75.2%). Brazil has three levels of governance: the Federal, State, and Municipal Government. Residents in the Northeast and Central-West regions were more confident than those in the Southeast. The sources of information consulted by the participants were also associated with governance confidence. Conclusions The study advanced knowledge by showing that trust in governance capacity is socially determined and is crossed by forces that can lead to dissent, reducing the level of trust, especially in the Federal Government.