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At recent the Reform party media events, two very distinctive heads can often be spotted in the forefront: the near-white locks of Danny Kruger and the swept-back blond mane of senior adviser James Orr.

As well as guiding the policy programme for what could be the UK’s next government, the pair have something else in common. Each is a highly devout believer who found religion in adulthood, and hold trenchant views on social issues such as reproductive rights and the family.

A Network of Faith

Kruger, an MP, who switched allegiance from the Conservatives, and Orr, a Cambridge academic, also sit on the advisory board of a rightwing thinktank known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is Paul Marshall, the investment tycoon who controls GB News and the rightwing Spectator magazine. Marshall is a devout Christian.

“Faith, particularly evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been one of the defining elements of American conservative politics,” its followers providing the core of a particular political support.

Transatlantic Links

Parallels do exist. Orr is personally connected to JD Vance that he has hosted him at his family home. Orr is also active in the NatCon movement, which has ties to the US religious-populism world.

However, direct comparisons quickly break down due to a basic issue of scale. While surveys indicate that close to a fourth of US adults are evangelicals, the proportion for the UK is roughly one-tenth of that at most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

There is another crucial element to consider. While US evangelicals tilt strongly to the political right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the wider picture here is quite different.

Research of nearly 1,500 evangelicals places the Labour Party in the lead with 26% support. The Reform party and Liberal Democrats are tied on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Other questions reveal backing from evangelicals for more generous welfare payments, but also significant concern about plans to permit assisted suicide.

“Sometimes with evangelicals there can be a gap between opinions, particularly regarding social issues, and how people cast their ballot,” explained a representative. “For example, someone might have a firm stance on abortion, but they do not view voting as likely to lead to change.”

Cross-Party Belief

Evangelical belief does exist in parliament, including cross-party prayer group meetings. But it is a reality present on the left, with figures like Kruger balanced out by Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

She has been very open about how her beliefs informs her politics, especially concerning issues such as poverty.

“Ethical fairness was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” she stated. “It’s part of our foundations, how we think about inequality in society, making sure we have a just system.”

Emerging Currents

Nonetheless, there exists a different and newer side to religion in UK politics, one more closely modelled on American ideas of faith-based nationalism.

The activist Tommy Robinson has begun to present himself as openly a Christian, though a lot of this is done as a contrast to Islam.

In a similar vein, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK branch of Turning Point, posts social media messaging about the country needing to “return to Christ” combined with anti-Islam content.

In a dramatic display of this, a linked Christian nationalist group called King’s Army paraded through Soho, a location apparently selected as it is the centre of London’s LGBT community.

A Niche Phenomenon

All this remains, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While commentators sometimes depict certain figures as financial backers of American-style religious politics, friends maintain they are little more than observant believers who are strongly opposed to any political exploitation of faith.

He has been not averse to occasional off-piste language, for example using a speech to censure what he said was a younger generation indoctrinated by a blend of ideologies.

“In the UK you do have a few Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it more often be a sort of Christian nostalgia, linked to our historical character,” noted an analyst.

A parliamentarian of faith on the right observed that while the issue of assisted dying had united MPs with faith, any connections beyond that felt restricted.

“I certainly don’t get the sense of much of an evangelical lobby,” they commented. “In my view, my faith is more a foundation for what I already believe. And here, religion is not particularly a vote winner.”