Although individuals aim their attempts to exert legitimate political influence at particular levels of government, the hierarchical organization of "political influence attempts" is an aspect of political participation which has not yet received systematic study. In order to examine the perceived political influence of rural people in a politically active farming region of the Upper Midwest, an area probability sample of 112 adults from Chippewa County, Wisconsin, contained approximately equal numbers of men and women. Using personal and telephone interviews, an 18 item scale ranked people hierarchically according to the highest level of local, state or federal government at which they felt they were most influential. Perceived political influence was associated with several personal and positional characteristics, including educational attainment, occupational status, annual family income, age, sex, political knowledge, sense of political efficacy and political interest. When regression techniques assessed the relationship between these characteristics and the perceived influence scale, occupational level and political efficacy appeared as important variables for men, and family income and political interest important variables for women. The methodology utilized should be potentially useful as a measure of the otherwise elusive status attainment dependent variable, political status. (Author/DS)