Even though Americans unaffiliated with any religion now make up nearly a quarter of the United States’ population, our political influence is disproportionately slight and likely could remain underpowered for a good while.
The problem is that “Nones,” as demographers call us, are a surprisingly disparate group whose fragmented nature undermines developing the unity and interconnectivity necessary for an effective national political base. And we apparently aren’t big voters, either.
In 2016, even though Nones represented 21% of registered voters, we comprised only 15% of those actually casting a ballot, according to thr Pew Research Center and nationwide exit poll data.
Nonetheless, secular activists are intent on turning around that voter apathy starting with this fall’s midterm elections, a first step in hopefully making non-religious people a prominent, powerful voting bloc.
Salt Lake City’s Mormon-owned Deseret Newsreported on this movement earlier this week.
“We want to be seen as a powerhouse constituency,” said Sarah Levin, director of grass-roots and community programs at the Secular Coalition for America.
What’s stopping us from achieving this? The main obstacle is that it’s a giant game of herding cats. “Nones” can’t be found in large, homogenous secular organizations or venues, as evangelicals are in churches and other organizations.
Read the full story at the Friendly Atheist Blog
