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

Beyond shaping the political agenda for what could be the UK’s future administration, the duo share another trait in common. Both are highly devout believer who found religion in adulthood, and hold strong opinions on social issues such as reproductive rights and the traditional family unit.

Connections and Convictions

The MP Kruger, who switched allegiance from the Conservatives, and Orr, a Cambridge academic, are members of the advisory board of a conservative policy group called the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is Paul Marshall, the investment tycoon who owns GB News and the rightwing Spectator magazine. Marshall is a practising Christian.

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

Cross-Over Connections

There are some links. Orr is personally connected to the US Vice-President that he has welcomed him at his private residence. Orr is also involved in the NatCon movement, which has ties to the US religious-populism world.

However, direct comparisons quickly break down due to a basic issue of numbers. While polling shows that nearly a fourth of US adults are evangelicals, the proportion for the UK is roughly one-tenth of that at most.

The UK Evangelical Vote

An additional crucial element to consider. While US evangelicals tilt strongly to the 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 Labour in the first place with 26% support. The Reform party and Liberal Democrats are level on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Further polling reveal backing from evangelicals for more generous welfare payments, but also significant concern about plans to permit assisted suicide.

“Among evangelicals there can be a dissonance between opinions, especially on social issues, and how people vote,” said one advocacy head. “As an instance, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they don’t see voting as a way to lead to change.”

Cross-Party Belief

Evangelism is present in parliament, including all-party prayer group meetings. But it is a phenomenon also of the left, with figures like Kruger countered by the Lib Dem Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

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

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

A Newer Strain

There is, however a distinct and more recent side to religion in UK politics, one influenced by American ideas of faith-based nationalism.

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

Similarly, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK outpost of Turning Point, posts social media messaging about the country needing to “return to Christ” combined with anti-Islam content.

In a dramatic display of this, a Turning Point-allied nationalist Christian group named King’s Army paraded 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 commentators sometimes depict certain figures as wealthy incubators of American-style religious politics, friends insist they are simply observant believers who are strongly opposed to any political exploitation of faith.

He has been not shy of occasional off-piste rhetoric, for example in an address 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 longing for a Christian past, linked to our historical character,” said one commentator.

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

“I certainly don’t 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 vote winner.”