LINCOLN- According to the latest Rural Poll conducted by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, there's increased pessimism about the present and future of rural Nebraska. The poll, now in its 28th year, found that 27% of respondents indicated that they are worse off today than five years ago, a significant jump from 21% last year and 11% in 2021.

This number makers the highest the poll has seen since 2009, when 28% said they believed they were worse off. L.J. McElravy, an associate professor of agriculture at UNL, said he expected to see more optimistic responses given that disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic have largely passed. "However," said McElravy, "I still see signs of hope, as we continue to see higher levels of optimism in relation to pessimism."

This was illustrated by the poll, which found that 45% of respondents said they were better off now than they were five years ago. Researchers at UNL attributed the trend toward pessimism to perceptions about the economy, despite the fact that only about a quarter of respondents said they expect significant increases in prices, inflation, and interest rates this year. The data was collected from 1,100 households from 86 of Nebraska's 93 counties.

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