---
title: "Religion weekly update, Oct. 14, 2026"
description: "Religion & Public Life A weekly digest of the Center’s latest research on religion and public life in the U.S. and around the world · Subscribe ↗ Media mentions Pew midterm poll: Catholics prefer Democratic House candidates by 3-point marginOct. 13 – EWTN The Trump administration’s cosmic battleOct. 11 – The New York Times * In the […]"
date: "2026-10-14"
authors:
  - name: "Jeffrey Diamant"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/newsletter/religion-weekly/religion-weekly-update-oct-14-2026/"
---

# Religion weekly update, Oct. 14, 2026

---

October 14, 2026

## Religion & Public Life

*A weekly digest of the Center's latest research on religion and public life in the U.S. and around the world · [**Subscribe ↗**](https://pewresearch.us1.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=434f5d1199912232d416897e4&id=3e953b9b70)*

---

## [Religious Groups’ Midterm Preferences](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/10/13/religious-groups-differ-widely-in-their-2026-midterm-preferences/)

White evangelical Protestant and White Catholic registered voters prefer Republican candidates over Democratic candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives. Registered voters in every other religious group we can analyze either are split roughly evenly or favor Democratic candidates in this year’s midterm elections, according to a [new Pew Research Center survey](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/10/13/religious-groups-differ-widely-in-their-2026-midterm-preferences/).

The findings also show that since the beginning of his second term, President Donald Trump’s approval rating has [dropped significantly](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2026/10/08/trumps-approval-rating-drops-as-fewer-americans-are-confident-in-his-handling-of-the-economy-other-issues/), and that the downward trend is evident in every religious group.

Today, White evangelical Protestants are the only religious group in which more people approve than disapprove of Trump’s job performance (58% vs. 40%). In every other group, more disapprove than approve. Atheists, agnostics and Black Protestants are the most likely to disapprove of Trump’s handling of the job.

#### Media mentions

[Pew midterm poll: Catholics prefer Democratic House candidates by 3-point margin](https://www.ewtnnews.com/world/us/catholics-prefer-democrats-midterms)
Oct. 13 - EWTN

[The Trump administration’s cosmic battle](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/11/briefing/the-trump-administrations-cosmic-battle.html)
Oct. 11 - The New York Times *

#### In the news

[Tensions with teachers, pupils and Turkiye: Inside Azerbaijan’s hijab row](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/14/tensions-with-teachers-pupils-and-turkiye-inside-azerbaijans-hijab-row)
Oct. 14 - Al Jazeera

[Leo XIV’s cancer diagnosis tests the assumption of a long papacy](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/13/world/europe/pope-leo-health-cancer.html)
Oct. 13 - The New York Times *

[Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Sikh groups say FBI data undercounts bias](https://religionnews.com/2026/10/13/jewish-muslim-hindu-and-sikh-groups-say-fbi-data-undercount-bias/)
Oct. 13 - Religion News Service

[Archbishop for U.S. military urges Catholics to recuse themselves from firing squad](https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2026/10/13/archbishop-us-military-urges-catholics-recuse-themselves-firing-squad/)
Oct. 13 - The Washington Post *

[Egypt’s Baha’i minority is running out of space to bury their dead](https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/egypts-bahai-minority-is-running-out-space-bury-their-dead-2026-10-13/)
Oct. 13 - Reuters *

[Border crisis in Spain’s Ceuta has exposed its Christian-Muslim fault lines](https://apnews.com/article/ceuta-immigration-spain-morocco-eu-0af757a2b7c13dabc72fb37a0b765799)
Oct. 12 - The Associated Press

[Black church leaders broaden voter outreach ahead of midterm elections](https://religionnews.com/2026/10/12/black-church-leaders-move-beyond-sanctuaries-to-get-out-vote-amid-restrictions-2/)
Oct. 12 - Religion News Service

[How the Supreme Court is reshaping the limits of religious rights in America](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/10/11/how-supreme-court-is-reshaping-limits-religious-rights-america/)
Oct. 12 - The Washington Post *

[Blakeman launches graphic attack on Mamdani in meeting with Hasidic Jews](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/12/nyregion/blakeman-mamdani-hasidic-jews.html)
Oct. 12 – The New York Times *

[Taliban firmly in control in Afghanistan 25 years after US-led invasion to oust them](https://apnews.com/article/afghanistan-taliban-us-invasion-anniversary-war-ee2cf4ec49abcb514d53b4ced748898b)
Oct. 8 – The Associated Press