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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 party policy chief Danny Kruger and the swept-back blond mane of senior adviser James Orr.

As well as guiding the political agenda for what could be the UK’s next government, the pair share another trait in common. Both are deeply committed believer who found religion in adulthood, and hold trenchant views on matters of society such as reproductive rights and the traditional family unit.

A Network of Faith

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

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

“Religion, specifically evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been a key characteristic of US rightwing politics,” its followers providing the core of a particular political support.

Cross-Over Connections

There are some links. Orr is sufficiently close to JD Vance that he has welcomed him at his family home. Orr is also active in the National Conservatism movement, which has ties to the US religious-populism world.

But any closer comparisons soon fall down due to a simple matter of scale. While polling shows that close to a fourth of US adults are evangelicals, the proportion for the UK is about a tenth of that at most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

An additional crucial element to take into account. While US evangelicals tilt strongly to the right, recent surveys by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the broader situation here is markedly distinct.

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

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

“Sometimes with evangelicals there can be a dissonance between opinions, particularly regarding social issues, and how people vote,” said one advocacy head. “For example, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they do not view voting as likely to lead to change.”

Faith Across the Aisle

Evangelical belief does exist in parliament, including all-party prayer group meetings. But it is a phenomenon also of 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.

“Moral justice was ‘a big part’ of Labour politics,” Maskell argued. “It’s part of our roots, how we think about disparity in society, ensuring we have a fair framework.”

A Newer Strain

There is, however a distinct and more recent side to religion in UK politics, one influenced by US concepts of religious nationalism.

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

In a similar vein, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK branch 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 display of this, a linked nationalist Christian group called King’s Army paraded through Soho, a location apparently selected as it is the centre of London’s LGBT community.

Limited Influence

All this remains, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While commentators sometimes depict certain figures as wealthy incubators of American-style religious politics, friends maintain they are simply observant believers who are firmly against 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 mix 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,” said one commentator.

One Christian MP on the right observed that while the issue of assisted dying had helped bring together MPs with faith, any connections beyond that felt limited.

“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 foundation for what I personally hold. And here, religion is not really a vote winner.”