(RNS) — Many of our nation’s top leaders today openly pronounce their Christian faith. Some even read Scripture (or what they imply to be Scripture) during official government briefings.
But according to a new poll by the Public Religion Research Institute, 64% of Americans do not want to live in a primarily Christian nation. Instead, they prefer an America of many faiths without a Christian majority.
“This is the antithesis of the Christian nationalist worldview, which essentially maintains that America was founded as a Christian nation, (and) it should remain a Christian nation,” said Melissa Deckman, CEO of PRRI.
The survey, “Competing Visions of America: Politics, Religion, and American Identity,” was conducted online May 1-18 among a representative sample of 5,469 adults (age 18 and up) living in all 50 states.
“Religious Pluralism or Christian Faith? By Party.” Chart courtesy PRRI
In addition, 77% of Americans say they would prefer the U.S. to be a nation made up of people from all over the world, a slight decrease from 80% in March 2025. Christian nationalism adherents (55%) and sympathizers (68%) are less likely to prefer a racially diverse nation over a nation primarily made up of people of Western European heritage.
Efforts to strengthen the place of Christianity in the public square have gained currency in recent years, going beyond public statement into public policy. In Texas, the state Legislature voted to require the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom despite an ongoing legal battle over a similar law in Louisiana. And the Texas state education board approved educational curricula for elementary schools that include stories from the Bible.
The results of this poll offer a rebuttal to such efforts, argues Deckman.
Nevertheless, a sizable portion of the American population agrees with the efforts to infuse Christianity into the public square. An overwhelming majority (94%) of those most strongly committed to the worldview of Christian nationalism believe that being Christian is important to being truly American. This group makes up roughly 11% of the total population of the US.
Similarly, 68% of white evangelical Protestants, President Donald Trump’s most stalwart base of support, prefer a nation primarily made up of Christians. Majorities of all other religious groups surveyed prefer a nation made up of people belonging to a wide variety of religions, with the slight exception of Hispanic Protestants — 51% favor a majority Christian nation.
Positive associations with Christian nationalism have only risen in recent years, however. Around 48% of Republicans favorably view the term today, 12 percentage points more than in 2022. In fact, positive associations with the term “Christian nationalism” have risen across most religious and political groups since 2022. Hispanic Protestan …