Understanding the Connection Between Religion and Views of Donald Trump: Insights from Pew Research Center’s Survey
The relationship between religion and politics has always been a complex and intriguing one, and the latest Pew Research Center survey sheds light on the connection between religion and views of former President Donald Trump. The survey, conducted among 12,693 U.S. adults, reveals some interesting insights into how different religious groups perceive Trump.
Among religious groups, White evangelical Protestants continue to have the most positive opinion of Trump, with two-thirds expressing a favorable view of him. This support is also seen among White Catholics, White nonevangelical Protestants, and Hispanic Protestants. However, in every other religious group analyzed in the survey, large majorities have unfavorable opinions of Trump, including atheists, agnostics, Black Protestants, and Jewish Americans.
Interestingly, the survey shows that Trump’s favorability rating is similar among Christians who attend church regularly and those who don’t. This challenges the notion that Trump’s base consists largely of non-churchgoing Christians. Among Christians as a whole, 47% of regular churchgoers and 46% of non-church-attending Christians have a favorable view of Trump.
Moreover, the survey highlights that many of the people who view Trump favorably don’t attend religious services regularly, but very few are nonreligious. Overall, 64% of respondents with a positive view of Trump attend religious services a few times a year or less often, while 35% go at least once or twice a month.
Another interesting finding is that while most people who view Trump positively don’t think he is especially religious himself, many believe he stands up for people with religious beliefs like theirs. Just 8% of those with a favorable view of Trump think he is very religious, but 51% think he stands up for people with religious beliefs like theirs.
Overall, the survey provides valuable insights into the intersection of religion and politics in America, showing the diverse views of different religious groups towards a polarizing figure like Donald Trump.