Home
/
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
/
7 Figures: Faith and the 2016 Campaign
7 Figures: Faith and the 2016 Campaign
Feb 1, 2026 3:35 AM

A new Pew Research Center survey examines how voters feel about the religiosity of presidential candidates. Here are seven figures you should know from the report:

1. More than half of Americans (51 percent) say they would be less likely to vote for a presidential candidate who does not believe in God. (This is down from 63 percent in 2007.)

2. About half of U.S. adults say it’s “very important” (27 percent) or “somewhat important” (24 percent) for a president to share their religious perspective. This view is mon among Republicans, among whom roughly two-thirds say it’s at least “somewhat important” to them that the president share their religious beliefs.

3. Relatively few Republicans think Trump is a particularly religious person. Overall, 44 percent of Republicans and those who lean toward the Republican Party say Trump is a “very religious” (5 percent) or “somewhat religious” (39 percent) person, while 47 percent say he is “not too religious” or “not at all religious.” By contrast, fully eight-in-ten Republicanssay Ben Carson is a religious person, three-quarters view Ted Cruz as a religious person, and seven-in-ten say the same about Marco Rubio.

4. More people view Clinton as “very” or “somewhat” religious than say the same about Sanders. This is true among both the public as a whole (48 percent vs. 40 percent) and those who identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party (65 percent vs. 47 percent).

5. Fully half of religiously unaffiliated registered voters (51 percent) think Sanders would be a successful president, while four-in-ten (42 percent) think Clinton would be a good or great president. Among black Protestant voters, about six-in-ten (62 percent) think Clinton will be a “good” or a “great” president, while 36 percent say this about Sanders. Among both groups (religious “nones” and black Protestants), just 15 percent or fewer think any of the Republican candidates would be good presidents.

6. Within their own party, more people in their own party than the opposing party view presidential candidates as religious. The biggest partisan gap is about Hillary Clinton: two-thirds of Democrats say she is “very” or “somewhat” religious, while two-thirds of Republicans say she is “not too” or “not at all” religious.

7. Half of Americans (51 percent) believe religious conservatives have too much control over the GOP, and more than four-in-ten (44 percent) think that liberals who arenotreligious have too much control over the Democratic Party.

Comments
Welcome to mreligion comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
Lewis on the Free Society
Last week Acton research fellow Jonathan Witt treated the topic of Tolkien and the free society at the June “Acton on Tap.” I was reminded of this theme when I finished reading C. S. Lewis’ novel, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Ed. note: The lack of a serial, or so-called ma in that title bothers me.) to my son last night. There’s a beautiful passage towards the end that illustrates what Lewis thought good government looks like: These...
Review: William F. Buckley Jr.
Lee Edwards calls William F. Buckley Jr. “The St. Paul of the conservative movement.” No other 20th century figure made such a vast contribution to the intellectual force of political conservatism. He paved the way for the likes of Ronald Reagan and all of those political children of Reagan who credit the former president for bringing them into politics. He achieved what no other had done and that was his ability to bring traditional conservatives, libertarians, and munists together under...
BP and the Big Spill
Ryan T. Anderson, editor of Public Discourse, weighs in on BP’s blowout in the Gulf of Mexico: What we’re seeing is an animus directed toward modern technology and industry, an unmodulated suspicion of the private sector’s motives, an unexamined belief that markets have failed, all coupled with an uncritical (and nearly unthinking) faith that, in the final analysis, only government and extensive regulation will save us from ourselves and protect Mother Nature. But the history of environmental progress tells a...
Public Schools: Adult Employment Programs
I’ve long argued that school choice is the quintessential bipartisan cause, with boundless potential to transform American primary and secondary education. Yet, for various reasons (all of them bad), it has failed to live up to that potential—its significant successes in various places notwithstanding. One more anecdote to file away on this es from Rich Lowry at NRO: the travails of Eva Moskowitz in New York City. Favorite quote: It’s amazing what you can plish, she says, when you design...
Acton Lecture Series: Alinsky for Dummies
Joseph Morris at Acton Lecture Series We’re posting the audio from Mr. Joseph Morris’ excellent May 6 Acton Lecture Series presentation, Alinsky for Dummies: His Persistent Influence and Its Meaning for American Society and Politics. As Lord Acton warned that power corrupts, Saul Alinsky — the father of modern munity organizing” — rejoiced that corruption empowers. Saul Alinsky As Morris pointed out, decades after Alinsky’s death his ideas and teaching continue to shape the American political and social landscape. Barack...
Acton University: Day One
Acton University 2010 is underway. This year, 450 students and faculty from 55 countries are gathered in Grand Rapids for a deep dive into the “free and virtuous society.” Attendees this year include seminarians and college students — groups that have studied at Acton conferences for two decades now — but also presidents of colleges, corporate executives, Christian missionaries, entrepreneurs, physicians, lawyers, business leaders, retired people and a few high school students. Acton also es 44 Protestant seminary professors who...
Acton Commentary — Europe: The Unjust Continent
This week’s Acton Commentary from Research Director Samuel Gregg. +++++++++ Europe: The Unjust Continent By Samuel Gregg In recent months, the European social model has been under the spotlight following Greece’s economic meltdown and the fumbling efforts of European politicians to prop up other tottering European economies. To an unprecedented extent, the post-war European model’s sustainability is being questioned. Even the New York Times has conceded something is fundamentally wrong with the model they and the American Left have been...
Acton on Tap: Tolkien and the Free Society
A reminder that tonight’s Acton on Tap promises to be another good one. Jonathan Witt, writer and Research Fellow at the Acton Institute, will lead a discussion about J.R.R. Tolkien’s views on freedom, capitalism, socialism, and distributism, and he will look at some of the ways those views have been misrepresented. The event takes place from 6-8 p.m. at the Derby Station in East Grand Rapids, Mich. (Map it here.) No advance registration is required. The only cost is your...
Acton Commentary: Unity or Unanimity at Reformed Council?
This week’s Acton Commentary from Jordan Ballor: Unity or Unanimity at Reformed Council? By Jordan Ballor Global es to Grand Rapids, Mich., this weekend in the form of the Uniting General Council of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC). Thousands of delegates, exhibitors, and volunteers will gather on the campus of Calvin College to mark the union of two Reformed ecumenical groups, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) and the Reformed Ecumenical Council (REC). This new global ecumenical...
Acton Lecture Series: Does Capitalism Destroy Culture?
Michael Miller at Acton Lecture Series In this new Acton Lecture Series audio, Acton’s Michael Miller discusses why many blame capitalism as the primary source of cultural disintegration. Miller, director of programs and Acton Media, asks: Does capitalism destroy culture or are other forces at work? Listen to the lecture online here: [audio: From Miller’s Jan. 21 Acton Commentary, “The End of Capitalism?” At least on equal par with a juridical framework as a factor in sustaining market systems is...
Related Classification
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.mreligion.com All Rights Reserved