Attendees wave flags as music is played before Vice President Mike Pence made comments at First Baptist Church Dallas, Sunday, June 28, 2020.
Attendees wave flags as music is played before Vice President Mike Pence made comments at First Baptist Church Dallas during a Celebrate Freedom Rally in Dallas, Sunday, June 28, 2020. | Tony Gutierrez, Associated Press

By Kelsey Dallas

Kelsey is an assistant managing editor for the Deseret News. She covers religion, sports and the Supreme Court.

As Americans prepare for next week’s contentious midterm elections, few are worried about running into their political opponents at church.

Just 23% of Protestant churchgoers in the United States believe their political views are out of step with the views of their congregation, compared to 55% who say their views match other worshippers’ thoughts, according to a new survey from Lifeway Research.

The survey also showed that many Americans seek out politically homogenous houses of worship, preferring to attend church with people who vote like them.

Half of Protestant churchgoers (50%) said they prefer to worship with people who share their political views, including 19% who “strongly agree” that such a congregation would be best, Lifeway Research found.

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But nearly as many Americans (41%) have the opposite preference and like when churches are politically mixed. Around one-quarter of Protestant churchgoers (23%) “strongly disagree” with the statement, “I prefer to attend a church where people share my political views.”

“While almost 1 in 5 churchgoers is adamant that they want to attend church with those who share their political views, there are just as many who strongly disagree with that perspective,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research in a statement. “The 23% who strongly disagree are clearly saying the source of unity they have with others in their church has nothing to do with partisanship.”

The fact that a large minority of Americans remain interested in worshipping with their political enemies is likely comforting to those working to heal partisan tensions. Organizations like the One America Movement have argued that churches have a key role to play in improving the tone of political debates.

“Faith communities offer the best chance to combat our polarization,” said Andrew Hanauer, One America’s president and CEO, last year, as the Deseret News previously reported.

But Lifeway Research’s survey showed that time may be running out to take advantage of the unique position of politically mixed congregations. In the future, such churches could become a thing of the past, since younger Protestants are more likely than older ones to prefer worshipping alongside people who share their political views.

“Almost 3 in 5 of those under 50 (57%) want a congregation with people who share their political views, compared to 47% of those 50 to 65 and 41% of those 65 and older,” researchers wrote.