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If Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton secure their respective presidential nominations, they would become two of the least popular major-party nominees of the past quarter-century. And part of the reason, experts say, is a new reality of American politics: Voters seem to not just dislike specific politicians anymore, they dislike politics in general.

In an analysis of election-year polling data since 1980, the awards for the highest 鈥渟trongly unfavorable鈥� ratings among major-party presidential candidates go to Mr. Trump 鈥� at a stunning 53 percent 鈥� and former Secretary of State Clinton, at 37 percent.

The trend also suggests that strongly-unfavorable ratings are becoming more common since the turn of the century. No. 3 in is George W. Bush in 2004, who notched 32 percent.

So what is behind this unprecedented unpopularity of two presumptive presidential nominees?

A major factor is the candidates themselves, experts say. Trump and Clinton are magnets for criticism in distinct ways, from Trump鈥檚 brand of fractious populism to Clinton's long and controversial political history.

But the two candidates are also commanding the spotlight in at a time when聽聽is dramatically shaping how voters view the entire political process.

鈥淧eople used to trust the government,鈥� says Shanna Pearson-Merkowitz, a political scientist at the University of Rhode Island. 鈥淭hey have had a trust in American government as whole to do what鈥檚 right, and that鈥檚 what鈥檚 really changed.鈥�

Not in the 1950s

The trend lines are well-known and long-term.聽Only 19 percent of Americans say they can trust the federal government to do what is right 鈥渏ust about always鈥� or 鈥渕ost of the time,鈥� according to a from the Pew Research Center, down from 73 percent in 1958. Meanwhile,聽political polarization , with the聽electorate becoming more hardened into liberal or conservative camps, and political parties increasingly hostile toward each other.

But the rise of Trump, paired with Clinton鈥檚 inability to pull away from Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Democratic primary, illustrates how polarization and disaffection have come to a head 鈥� embodied in presumptive nominees with historic unfavorability.

鈥淸Voters] with the lowest trust in government, they鈥檙e picking outsider candidates not because they鈥檙e ideologically extreme, but because they鈥檙e bucking the establishment,鈥� says Professor Pearson-Merkowitz.

鈥淭he big support for both Sanders and Trump is not based on ideology at all,鈥� she adds, 鈥渋t鈥檚 trust in government.鈥�

This week鈥檚 Democratic primary in West Virginia highlighted that. Fewer than 20 percent of Democratic primary voters in the state identified as 鈥渧ery liberal,鈥� to The Washington Post, yet Senator Sanders 鈥� a self-proclaimed democratic socialist who has been further left than any presidential candidate this election 鈥� won handily. He even won over half of Democratic voters who said they want the next president to be more conservative than President Obama.

鈥淭he bottom line,鈥� wrote the Post鈥檚 James Hohmann, 鈥渋s most people are not voting for [Sanders] because he is liberal. They are voting for him because they perceive his promised 鈥榩olitical revolution鈥� as a challenge to the system that has failed them.鈥�

While the increased polarization makes most voters unified in disliking the opposing party鈥檚 candidate, the increased disaffection makes some voters dislike the candidate they may be most aligned with ideologically.

鈥淚f Trump and Clinton鈥檚 strongly unfavorable ratings were simply a byproduct of polarized politics, you鈥檇 expect them to have high 鈥榮trongly favorable鈥� ratings too,鈥� writes Harry Enten for FiveThirtyEight. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛.鈥�

Partisanship's long shadow

This disaffection is also apparent in the rise of independents, who now make up almost 40 percent of registered voters 鈥� more than Republicans or Democrats, and the highest proportion in more than 75 years,聽.

Research shows that these independents are not less partisan than party members, they just want to distance themselves from the聽negative stigma associated with partisan politics.聽

鈥淎ssociating oneself with partisan anger, stubbornness, and inflexibility does not seem like the best way to make a great impression,鈥� said political scientist Samara Klar聽to .听听

鈥淥n the other hand, being independent and above the partisan morass seems much more impressive,鈥� added Professor Klar, coauthor of the book聽鈥淚ndependent Politics.鈥澛犫�淧eople behave in ways that they perceive to be socially desirable and that cast them in the most positive light.鈥澛�

Indeed, the 1950s-style faith in government as a force for good in American life seems to have largely disappeared.

鈥淭he New Deal era, and for the politicians following that, it was about what the government can do,鈥� says Pearson-Merkowitz.

What changed? Many things, including controversy over the Vietnam war, the Watergate scandal, and a burgeoning media industry to put government under scrutiny.

Pearson-Merkowitz also points to rising revolt, especially on the political right, against big government. 鈥淣ow for the past 30 years it鈥檚 been all about, 鈥榃e need to shrink the size of government because government鈥檚 dysfunctional.鈥欌��

鈥淎nd it鈥檚 just been heightened and heightened over the years to the extreme where elected officials are saying, 鈥楽hut it down, I don鈥檛 agree to anything, just shut it down.鈥� And we鈥檝e seen it shut down,鈥� she adds.

Trump and Clinton might be extreme examples, but they're just part of a broader trend, says聽Geoffrey Skelley, a spokesperson for the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a strong chance this is something politicians will have to deal with going forward.鈥�