In August of 2018, the Pew Research Center released a study on American religious attitudes, dividing all Americans into seven categories. Here are the results of the study that pertain to the nonreligious community.
- 29% of Americans are nonreligious. From here, Pew sorts them into two groups:
- The “Solidly Secular” make up 17% of all Americans. This group is the least religious of the seven groups. These relatively affluent, highly educated U.S. adults – mostly white and male – describe themselves as neither religious nor spiritual and reject all New Age beliefs as well as belief in the God of the Bible. In fact, many do not believe in a higher power at all.
- The “Religious Resisters” make up 12% of all Americans. This group does believe in some higher power or spiritual force (but not the God of the Bible), and many have some New Age beliefs and consider themselves spiritual but not religious. At the same time, members of this group express strongly negative views of organized religion, saying that churches have too much influence in politics and that, overall, religion does more harm than good.
- 78 % of Religious Resisters and 71% of the Solidly Seculars identify or lean toward the Democratic Party.
- 54% of Religious Resisters and 45% of Solidly Seculars identify as liberals.
- 84% of Religious Resisters and 73% of the Solidly Seculars disapprove of President Trump’s performance. This makes them the two groups most dissatisfied with the president.
- 58% of Religious Resisters and 60% of Solidly Seculars say they often/sometimes vote in local elections.
- 50% of Religious Resisters and 45% of the Solidly Seculars say they have contacted an elected official in the last 5 years.
