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At recent the Reform party media events, two very distinctive figures can often be seen in the forefront: the near-white locks of Danny Kruger and the styled blond hair of James Orr.

Beyond shaping the policy programme for what might become the UK’s future administration, the duo have something else in common. Both are highly devout Christian who came to religion in adulthood, and possess strong opinions on matters of society such as reproductive rights and the traditional family unit.

Connections and Convictions

Kruger, an MP, who switched allegiance from the Conservatives, and Orr, a Cambridge academic, also sit on the steering committee of a conservative policy group known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is the financier Paul Marshall, the investment tycoon who owns GB News and the conservative Spectator magazine. Marshall is a devout Christian.

“Religion, specifically evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been one of the defining elements of US rightwing politics,” with its adherents providing the core of a particular political support.

Cross-Over Connections

Parallels do exist. Orr is personally connected to JD Vance that he has welcomed him at his family home. Orr is also active in the NatCon movement, which has ties to the American faith-based populist world.

However, direct parallels quickly break down due to a simple matter of numbers. While surveys indicate that close to a quarter of US adults are evangelical Christians, the figure for the UK is roughly one-tenth of that at the very most.

A Different Landscape

An additional important factor to take into account. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance suggests that the wider picture in Britain 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 level on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Further polling demonstrate support among evangelicals for increased welfare payments, but also significant concern about plans to permit assisted dying.

“Among evangelicals there can be a gap between opinions, particularly regarding social issues, and how people vote,” explained a representative. “For example, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they do not view voting as a way to lead to change.”

Cross-Party Belief

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

She has been explicit about how faith shapes her politics, notably on issues such as poverty.

“Moral justice was ‘a big part’ of Labour politics,” Maskell argued. “It stems from our foundations, how we think about inequality in society, making sure we have a fair framework.”

A Newer Strain

Nonetheless, there exists a different and newer side to religion in UK politics, one influenced by American ideas of faith-based nationalism.

The activist Tommy Robinson has begun to present himself as openly a Christian, although much of this is done as a counterpoint to Islam.

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

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

Limited Influence

These elements remain, however, fairly niche in UK politics. While critics sometimes portray certain figures as financial backers of US-style evangelism, friends maintain they are simply devout believers who are firmly against any politicisation of faith.

Kruger is not averse to occasional off-piste rhetoric, for example in an address to censure what he said was a younger generation influenced 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,” said one commentator.

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 organized faith-based lobby,” they commented. “In my view, my faith is more a basis for what I personally hold. And here, religion is not particularly a vote winner.”