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At recent Reform UK press conferences, two very distinctive figures can often be spotted in the front row: the near-white locks of party policy chief 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 share another trait in common. Both are deeply committed Christian who found religion in adulthood, and hold strong opinions on matters of society such as abortion and the traditional family unit.

A Network of Faith

The MP Kruger, who switched allegiance from the Conservatives, and Orr, a university scholar, also sit on the steering committee of a rightwing thinktank known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is Paul Marshall, the hedge fund millionaire who controls GB News and the rightwing Spectator magazine. Marshall is a devout Christian.

“Faith, particularly Protestant evangelism, 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.

Transatlantic Links

There are some links. Orr is sufficiently close to the US Vice-President that he has hosted him at his family home. Orr is also involved in the National Conservatism movement, which has ties to the American faith-based populist world.

However, direct parallels quickly break down due to a simple matter of scale. While polling shows that nearly a fourth of US adults are evangelical Christians, the proportion for the UK is about a tenth of that at most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

An additional important factor to consider. While US evangelicals tilt strongly to the right, recent surveys by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the wider picture in Britain is markedly distinct.

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

Other questions reveal support among evangelicals for more generous welfare payments, but also concerted alarm about plans to permit assisted suicide.

“Among evangelicals there can be a dissonance between opinions, particularly regarding social issues, and how people vote,” explained a representative. “As an instance, someone might have a firm stance on abortion, but they don’t see voting as likely to lead to change.”

Cross-Party Belief

Evangelism is present in parliament, including all-party faith-based meetings. But it is a reality present on the political left, with figures like Kruger countered by Tim Farron and the Labour MP Rachael Maskell.

Maskell is very open about how her beliefs shapes her politics, notably on issues such as economic disadvantage.

“Ethical fairness was ‘a big part’ of Labour politics,” she stated. “It stems from our roots, how we think about inequality in society, making sure we have a just system.”

A Newer Strain

Nonetheless, there exists a distinct and more recent side to religion in UK politics, one more closely modelled on American ideas of religious nationalism.

Tommy Robinson has started to present himself as explicitly 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 manifestation of this, a Turning Point-allied nationalist Christian 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

These elements remain, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While commentators sometimes depict certain figures as financial backers of US-style evangelism, friends maintain they are simply observant believers who are firmly against any political exploitation of faith.

Kruger is not averse to sometimes unconventional language, for example in an address to censure what he said was a younger generation indoctrinated by a blend of ideologies.

“Here in Britain you do have some Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it tends to be a sort of longing for a Christian past, linked to our historic identity,” noted an analyst.

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

“I do not get the sense of much of an evangelical lobby,” they said. “In my view, my faith is more a basis for what I already believe. And here, religion is not particularly a decisive electoral issue.”