Ask a Political Scientist: Religion and Politics on Campus
Editor's Note:The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the MSU Exponent, its editorial staff, advisers, or Montana State University.
QUESTION: It seems like religion has become an important factor in these midterm elections, with more Democrats trying to tap into a long-time Republican held Christian base. How will this change the direction of the Democratic Party, and do you foresee it conflicting with a rising socialist movement?
ANSWER: In “On the Jewish Question,” Karl Marx observed that “…America is pre-eminently the country of religiosity.” In a debate with the philosopher Bruno Bauer, Marx argued that making religion private, and the state secular, was not a clear path to solving the “problem” of religious difference for modern politics. The supposed “wall of separation” between church and state that the American Founding Fathers built had, if anything, served to make religious fervor stronger in the U.S. This story, however, has evolved a bit in the 21st century.
According to a Pew study published last week, key religious indicators have held steady in the U.S. since 2020. But compared to 2007, when 83% of survey respondents “identified with a religion,” today that number is 70%. In 2007 56% of respondents “viewed religion as very important,” compared to 44% today. That number is traditionally higher among older versus younger people, and among women compared to men (though Gen Z men have recently reported higher religiosity than women). Republicans are more religious than Democrats across all age groups, but that partisan gap is most substantial among 18 – 22 year olds. Having said that, while the youngest Republicans now attend church at the same rates as older Republicans, the youngest Democrats are also catching up to Democrats over 55.
So, religiosity has declined overall in the U.S. but increased or intensified among certain demographics. What does this mean for electoral and party politics?
The left has tended over past decades to cede religious discourse to conservative evangelicals on the right. When “morality” gets coded as “moralizing,” it can be hard to square with the left’s traditional commitment to individuality, moral equality, and pluralism of ideas and ways of life. But morality doesn’t have to be moralizing (as many on the right would also concur), and several current democratic candidates have been actively referencing a social gospel Jesus to enthusiastic crowds. Religion and politics watchers are paying close attention to how progressive Christian candidates like James Talarico (Texas Democrat running for Senate) and Sarah Trone Garriott (Iowa Democrat running for the House) are campaigning. By the time this column is published we’ll probably know how they – and other Democratic candidates identifying as pastors, chaplains, or seminarians – have fared.
So yes, the Democratic party may be undergoing a bit of a religious course correction. From my perspective, there’s no reason for this development to undermine a rising socialist movement on the left. The Jesus who championed “the last, the least, and the lowest” was nothing if not a social justice advocate! That’s not the only figure of Jesus one could mobilize, to be sure, but that Jesus could do some real coalition-building in the Democratic party, the way the prosperity gospel Jesus has done in the Republican party.
Obviously, Christianity is not the only religion influencing American politics today. While only about 2.3% of Americans identify as Jewish, U.S.-Israel relations, the war in Gaza, and the increase in domestic anti-Semitism over the past years (up 63% since 2023) make Judaism a prominent topic in political news. Muslims comprise about 1.5% of the population in the U.S., but have been the subject of extensive political consideration over the past decades, including currently with 11 Muslim candidates running for Congress in 2026. Approximately 1% of Americans identify as Hindu, and 1.3% as Buddhist, among a wide array of other small but active religions. And of course, under the umbrella of “Christianity,” the variation across Catholicism, Evangelical Protestantism, and Unitarian Universalism, among other denominations, is significant.
Religion and religious difference will be important aspects of American politics, including electoral politics, for the foreseeable future (likely forever!). Your question prompts us to ask whether and how the Democratic Party can build a tent big enough for the Christians and the Pagans to sit together at the table (as the Dar Williams song goes); or for religious and spiritual commitments to align with liberal and left ideologies in a way that strengthens, not challenges, progressive political projects. Time will tell!
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