Common Ground • July 11th, 2022

Here's Where Democrats and Republicans Agree on Religious Liberty

Religion And Faith,Freedom Of Religion,Religious Freedom,Common Ground

Image by American Life League/ Flickr

Religious freedom has long been intertwined with hot-button issues from gay rights to abortion. When the line between religion and politics gets blurry, some call to uphold church-state separation, while others believe that religion can never be entirely separate from political beliefs.

However, there are principles of religious liberty that most Americans agree with. Here are a few examples of data and stories to support that:

2024 data from Pew Research Center shows that 55% of U.S. adults support the government upholding the separation of church and state, while only 16% say it should stop enforcing it. Other Pew data shows that among Republicans, just 23% oppose enforcement, and among Democrats, only 10%—suggesting bipartisan agreement on this founding principle.
2024 Pew data also finds that only 13% of Americans support designating Christianity as the official U.S. religion. While 44% believe the government should endorse Christian moral values without declaring a state religion, 39% oppose either action—showing a nation cautious about religious favoritism.
2021 Pew data reported a 15% drop among Republicans and a 16% drop among Democrats (since 2016) in the belief that being Christian is essential to being “Truly American”—suggesting a shared move away from religious exclusivity in national identity.
2024 Pew polling shows that 95% of both Republicans and Democrats agree it is important for a president to lead an ethical and moral life. When it comes to religion specifically, 78% of Republicans and 53% of Democrats say it’s important for a president to stand up for people with their religious beliefs.
2024 Pew data confirms that 80% of U.S. adults—across party lines—believe religion’s influence in American life is declining. While views on whether this is a problem may differ, the perception itself is widely shared.
2022–2023 data from the Becket Fund shows record-high public support for religious pluralism, with a Religious Freedom Index score of 84 in 2022 and consistent levels in 2023—reflecting strong cross-partisan support for diverse faith expression.
In the 2024 election cycle, 71% of voters overall said religion and government should remain separate—including 87% of Harris supporters and 55% of Trump supporters—indicating notable overlap on the principle, even amid political polarization, according to Pew data.

See more examples of common ground on issues where you might not expect to find it:

Clare Ashcraft is the Bridging Intern at AllSides. She has a Center bias.

This piece was reviewed by Managing Editor Henry A. Brechter (Center bias), Aidanne DePoy, Research Intern (Left bias), and Julie Mastrine, Director of Marketing and Media Bias Ratings (Lean Right bias).

Religion And Faith,Freedom Of Religion,Religious Freedom,Common Ground