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At recent Reform UK press conferences, a pair of notable figures can often be seen in the front row: the pale hair of party policy chief Danny Kruger and the swept-back blond mane of James Orr.

Beyond shaping the political agenda for what might become the UK’s next government, the duo have something else in common. Each is a highly devout Christian who came to religion in adulthood, and hold strong opinions on matters of society 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, are members of the advisory board of a conservative policy group known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

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

“Faith, particularly evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been a key characteristic of US rightwing politics,” its followers forming the bedrock of a particular political support.

Cross-Over Connections

There are some links. Orr is personally connected to the US Vice-President that he has hosted him at his private residence. Orr is also involved in the National Conservatism movement, which has connections to the American faith-based populist world.

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

The UK Evangelical Vote

An additional important factor to consider. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the political right, new polling by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance indicate the wider picture in Britain is quite different.

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

Other questions reveal backing from evangelicals for increased 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 cast their ballot,” explained a representative. “As an instance, someone might have a strong opinion 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 phenomenon also of the political left, with figures like Kruger countered by the Lib Dem Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

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

“Ethical fairness was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” she stated. “It stems from our roots, how we think about disparity in society, making sure we have a fair framework.”

Emerging Currents

There is, however a different and newer side to religion in UK politics, one more closely modelled on American ideas of religious nationalism.

Tommy Robinson has started to portray 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 outpost of Turning Point, includes social media messaging about the country needing to “return to Christ” alongside anti-Muslim content.

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

Limited Influence

All this remains, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While critics sometimes portray certain figures as wealthy incubators of US-style evangelism, associates insist they are little more than observant believers who are firmly against any political exploitation of faith.

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

“In the UK you do have some 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.

One Christian MP on the right 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 evangelical lobby,” they commented. “For me, my faith is more a basis for what I personally hold. And here, religion is not really a vote winner.”