Survey Shows Political Divides Between Mainline Clergy and Churchgoers

Sept. 14, 2023

WASHINGTON — A new national survey report provides insight into the ways mainline Protestant clergy are politically distinct from white mainline Protestant churchgoers. The report, “Clergy and Congregations in a Time of Transformation,” considers the perspectives of more than 3,000 mainline Protestant clergy from the seven largest mainline Protestant denominations on the cultural and political divides facing the nation, and how such divides are impacting their own congregations. 

Among the findings, more than half of United Methodist clergy (53 percent) are at least "somewhat satisfied" with the work they do as ordained ministers, while nearly a third (32 percent) are "very satisfied" with their work. 

Overall, mainline clergy hold more progressive positions on social issues, compared with survey data about white mainline Protestant churchgoers from PRRI’s 2023 Health of Congregations Survey. Clergy are more supportive of LGBTQ rights, more likely to oppose the overturn of Roe v. Wade, and less likely to believe America is in danger of losing its culture and identity than their congregants.

About half of mainline Protestant clergy identify with the Democratic Party (49%), compared to only 14% who identify with the Republican Party and 28% who identify as independent. White mainline Protestant churchgoers, on the other hand, tend to identify more as Republican (36%) or independent (35%), compared to one in four who identify as Democrats (24%).

“Our new survey finds that mainline Protestant clergy and their congregants are divided politically,” says Melissa Deckman, CEO of PRRI. “Despite those differences, mainline clergy believe it is important for churches to get involved in social issues even if such involvement provokes difficult conversations.”

Additionally, the report finds:  

  • Nearly nine in ten mainline clergy report discussing poverty and inequality in their churches and eight out of ten clergy say they discuss racism in their churches.
  • Mainline clergy in rural areas hold more conservative views and are less likely to speak about social issues in their churches compared with their counterparts at urban or suburban churches. 
  • More than two-thirds of conservative clergy (68%) say they have thought about leaving their current religious tradition compared to 40% of moderate and 36% of liberal clergy.
  • The vast majority of mainline clergy across all denominations say they feel that they are positively influencing other people’s lives through their work every day or at least once a week (76%) and more than seven in ten clergy (72%) say they are optimistic about the future of their church. 

Finally, despite their political differences, most mainline Protestant clergy believe their congregants are largely accepting of them when their political views differ and are also generally accepting of their fellow church members in cases of political disagreement. Nearly seven in ten clergy (69%) say their congregations are at least moderately accepting of them when they have a political difference and only 2% of clergy say their congregants are not at all accepting of each other’s political differences.

Read the Full Report