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At recent Reform UK press conferences, a pair of notable heads can often be spotted in the front row: the near-white locks of Danny Kruger and the styled blond hair of senior adviser James Orr.

As well as guiding the policy programme for what could be the UK’s future administration, the duo have something else in common. Both are highly devout believer who found religion in adulthood, and possess strong opinions on matters of society such as reproductive rights and the family.

Connections and Convictions

The MP Kruger, who defected from the Conservatives, and Orr, a university scholar, also sit on the advisory board of a conservative policy group known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

A further participant is Paul Marshall, the investment tycoon who controls GB News and the conservative Spectator magazine. Marshall is a devout Christian.

“Faith, particularly evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been one of the defining elements of US rightwing politics,” with its adherents forming the bedrock of a particular political support.

Cross-Over Connections

Parallels do exist. Orr is sufficiently close to the US Vice-President that he has welcomed him at his family home. Orr is also involved in the National Conservatism movement, which has connections to the US religious-populism world.

However, direct comparisons soon fall down due to a simple matter of scale. While polling shows that nearly a quarter of US adults are evangelicals, the proportion for the UK is about a tenth of that at the very most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

An additional crucial element to take into account. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the political right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the broader situation in Britain is quite different.

Research of nearly 1,500 evangelicals shows the Labour Party in the first place with over a quarter backing. The Reform party and Liberal Democrats are level on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Further polling reveal backing from evangelicals for increased welfare payments, but also concerted alarm about plans to permit assisted dying.

“Sometimes with evangelicals there can be a gap between personal views, particularly regarding social issues, and how people cast their ballot,” said one advocacy head. “For example, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they don’t see voting as likely to lead to change.”

Faith Across the Aisle

Evangelical belief does exist in parliament, including cross-party faith-based meetings. But it is a reality also of the left, with figures like Kruger balanced out by Tim Farron and the Labour MP Rachael Maskell.

Maskell is explicit about how faith shapes her politics, notably on issues such as economic disadvantage.

“Ethical fairness was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” Maskell argued. “It stems from our roots, how we think about disparity in society, ensuring we have a just system.”

Emerging Currents

There is, however a distinct and more recent side to religion in UK politics, one more closely modelled on US concepts of faith-based nationalism.

Tommy Robinson has started to portray himself as explicitly Christian, although much of this is done as a counterpoint to Islam.

Similarly, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK outpost of the Turning Point group, posts social media messaging about the country needing to “re-embrace Christianity” combined with anti-Muslim content.

In a dramatic manifestation of this, a Turning Point-allied nationalist Christian group called King’s Army paraded through Soho, a location seemingly chosen as it is the centre of London’s LGBT community.

Limited Influence

These elements remain, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While critics sometimes portray certain figures as wealthy incubators of American-style religious politics, friends insist they are little more than devout believers who are firmly against any political exploitation of faith.

He has been not shy of sometimes unconventional rhetoric, for example using a speech to censure what he said was a younger generation influenced by a blend of ideologies.

“Here in Britain you do have a few Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it tends to be a sort of Christian nostalgia, linked to our historical character,” said one commentator.

One Christian MP with conservative views observed that while the issue of assisted dying had united MPs with faith, any connections beyond that felt restricted.

“I do not get the sense of much of an organized faith-based 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.”