Religion and political parties in America

Abstract

To understand the relationship of religion and political parties in the United States one must first grasp the nature of the American party system. The durability of the two parties and their permeability tend to channel the salient religious cleavages of the nation. Indeed, throughout American history, religious currents have flowed powerfully through the party system, defining partisan attachments and shaping voting behaviour. While the American evangelical community includes many religious minorities, white evangelicals remain one of the largest and most cohesive voting blocks in America, pivotal to Republican fortunes. American Jews always have been in the vanguard of a secular vision of American politics. The vast majority of Jews in the United States are liberals who celebrate the Enlightenment ideal of the nonsectarian state. The increasing religious pluralism of America is reflected in measurable voting behaviour.