Should The United States Be A Christian Nation? Support By State

Map created by PRRI

The map above shows support for “Christian Nationalism” in the United States by state based on those PPRI found to be Adherents & Sympathizers.

Support varied from considerably across states, ranging from a low of 17% to a high of 50%.

Across the US as a whole Three in ten Americans qualify as Christian nationalism Adherents (10%) or Sympathizers (20%), compared with two-thirds who qualify as Skeptics (37%) or Rejecters (30%).

To measure Christian nationalism, PRRI asked five questions about the relationship between Christianity, American identity, and the U.S. government. They were:

1. The U.S. government should declare America a Christian nation?
2. U.S. laws should be based on Christian values?
3. If the U.S. moves away from our Christian foundations, we will not have a country anymore?
4. Being Christian is an important part of being truly American?
5. God has called Christians to exercise dominion over all areas of American society?

Based on their answers to these five questions, each respondent receives a composite score on the Christian nationalism scale (with a range of zero to one) and is then assigned to one of four groups:

Christian Nationalism Adherents (Score 0.75–1): These Americans overwhelmingly either agree or completely agree with all five statements in the scale. This group includes 10% of Americans.

Christian Nationalism Sympathizers (Score 0.5–0.74): These Americans agree with most statements in the scale, but they are less likely than Adherents to completely agree. This group includes 20% of Americans.

Christian Nationalism Skeptics (Score 0.01-0.49): These Americans disagree with most statements in the scale, but they are less likely than Rejecters to completely disagree. This group includes 37% of Americans.

Christian Nationalism Rejecters (Score 0): These Americans completely disagree with all five statements in the scale. This group includes 30% of Americans.

Full Data By State

State	Adherents	Sympathizers	Skipped	Skeptics	Rejecters
Mississippi	19	31	3	30	16
North Dakota	14	36	1	36	14
West Virginia	18	29	4	32	16
Alabama	23	24	2	37	14
Louisiana	18	28	4	30	20
Nebraska	15	30	0	35	19
Tennessee	19	26	4	30	21
Kentucky	19	26	3	30	22
Wyoming	17	28	1	35	20
Arkansas	17	27	6	30	20
South Dakota	14	28	0	33	24
South Carolina	18	24	3	34	21
Oklahoma	18	23	3	36	21
Indiana	10	30	2	33	25
Missouri	13	27	2	36	23
Montana	14	26	0	38	23
Kansas	9	29	2	33	27
North Carolina	15	21	2	30	31
Idaho	14	21	1	42	21
Texas	12	22	3	39	24
Georgia	11	22	4	36	26
Florida	10	23	4	37	25
New Mexico	11	21	1	38	28
Iowa	12	19	4	34	31
Ohio	10	21	3	35	32
Alaska	7	24	0	35	35
All Americans	10	20	3	37	30
Pennsylvania	10	19	4	37	30
Maine	4	25	4	29	38
Delaware	10	18	3	48	21
Rhode Island	11	17	6	42	23
Minnesota	8	20	4	39	29
Vermont	11	17	0	34	37
Utah	10	18	1	45	26
Arizona	9	18	3	38	32
Colorado	6	20	1	38	34
Michigan	8	18	5	39	30
Hawaii	8	17	1	46	28
New Hampshire	6	20	2	41	32
Wisconsin	8	17	2	40	33
District of Columbia	6	18	1	33	43
Connecticut	2	21	6	28	43
Illinois	9	15	4	40	33
Virginia	7	16	3	38	37
California	7	15	3	40	36
Nevada	6	14	4	34	42
New Jersey	5	15	4	39	36
Washington	4	16	4	32	45
Maryland	6	13	4	38	39
New York	5	14	5	38	38
Massachusetts	5	13	3	34	44
Oregon	5	12	3	38	41

Other key Findings:

Throughout 2023, PRRI interviewed over 22,000 adults as part of its American Values Atlas, providing the first comprehensive estimate of support for Christian nationalism across all 50 states.

The study explores the intersections of religion, party affiliation, education, race, and other factors with Christian nationalist views.

Key Findings:

1. Prevalence of Christian Nationalism:
   • Approximately 30% of Americans are either Christian nationalism Adherents (10%) or Sympathizers (20%).
   • In contrast, 67% are Skeptics (37%) or Rejecters (30%).
   • These proportions have remained stable since the initial survey in late 2022.
2. Geographic Distribution:
   • Support for Christian nationalism is significantly higher in red states than in blue states.
   • States with the highest levels of support form a horseshoe shape, spanning from the upper Midwest, through the Deep South, and up through the Appalachian Mountains.
   • Notable states with high support include North Dakota and Mississippi (50% each), Alabama and West Virginia (47% each), and Louisiana (46%).
3. Political Correlations:
   • A strong correlation exists between support for Christian nationalism and voting for former President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.
   • This relationship is particularly pronounced among white Americans.
4. Demographic Insights:
   • Christian nationalist beliefs are more common among certain political and demographic groups.
   • Nearly four in ten residents of red states identify as Christian nationalists, nearly double the proportion in blue states.
5. Impact of Religion and Race:
   • White Christian nationalists are more likely to align with the Republican Party and support Trump.
   • Black Americans who hold Christian nationalist views are not significantly more likely to identify as Republican or support Trump, indicating a unique intersection of race and political identity.

Detailed Findings:

1. State-Level Analysis:
   • The survey reveals considerable variation in support for Christian nationalism across states, ranging from a low of 17% to a high of 50%.
   • Red states, particularly in the Midwest and South, show the highest levels of support.
2. Political and Demographic Groups:
   • Certain political groups, particularly Republicans, are more likely to support Christian nationalism.
   • Educational attainment also plays a role, with those lacking a four-year college degree showing higher levels of support.
3. Religious Groups:
   • White evangelical Protestants and those attending religious services frequently are among the strongest supporters of Christian nationalism.
4. Theological and Political Worldviews:
   • Christian nationalists often hold specific theological beliefs, such as prophecy, healing, and the prosperity gospel.
   • They are also more likely to believe in the necessity of political violence to achieve their goals, with significant proportions expressing readiness to resort to violence.
5. Issue Priorities:
   • Immigration and gun access are top priorities for white Christian nationalists when considering political candidates.
   • Other issues like abortion, LGBTQ rights, and climate change are less critical as litmus test issues for this group.
6. Race and Ethnicity:
   • Support for Christian nationalism is refracted through racial and ethnic identities, leading to divergent political outcomes among white, Hispanic, and Black Americans.
   • White and Hispanic Christian nationalists are more likely to identify as Republican and support Trump, whereas Black Christian nationalists show more complex political affiliations.
7. Predictors of Beliefs:
   • Among Black Americans, factors such as education level, religious behavior, and theological beliefs (charismatic/prosperity gospel) are significant predictors of Christian nationalist views.
   • For white and Hispanic Americans, party affiliation and being born-again or evangelical Christians are strong predictors.

Methodology

The survey methodology involved online interviews conducted between March and December 2023. The sample was drawn from Ipsos’s KnowledgePanel and supplemented by opt-in survey panels to enhance representation in smaller states. The sample was weighted to match the demographic characteristics of the U.S. population based on age, race, ethnicity, gender, education, and income.

You can read the full report here.