In a 2020 survey, 5% said God picked Trump for president in 2016 because of Trump’s policies; 3% said the same about Obama’s earlier elections | Pew Research Center

September 5, 2025

Most Americans Don’t Believe God Played a Role in Recent Presidential Election Outcomes

In a 2020 survey, 5% said God picked Trump for president in 2016 because of Trump’s policies; 3% said the same about Obama’s earlier elections

In a 2020 survey, 5% said God picked Trump for president in 2016 because of Trump’s policies; 3% said the same about Obama’s earlier elections

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In a 2020 survey, 5% said God picked Trump for president in 2016 because of Trump’s policies; 3% said the same about Obama’s earlier elections

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Most Americans Don’t Believe God Played a Role in Recent Presidential Election Outcomes
4% say God chose Trump for president in 2024 because God approves of his policies; 2% say Biden won in 2020 because God approved his policies
In a 2020 survey, 5% said God picked Trump for president in 2016 because of Trump’s policies; 3% said the same about Obama’s earlier elections
80% of U.S. Christians say ‘good Christians’ can disagree about Trump
Fewer than 1 in 10 in each party say God chose recent presidential winners because of their policies
8% of White evangelicals say God chose Donald Trump because God approves of his policies
51% of Black Protestants say Trump’s election was part of God’s plan, but that this doesn’t necessarily mean God approves of his policies
Most Catholics and White nonevangelical Protestants think God played no role in the election of Trump or Biden
About 9 in 10 religiously unaffiliated Americans say God plays no role in presidential elections or that they don’t believe in God at all
Majorities in all Christian subgroups say that ‘good Christians’ can disagree about Trump
A quarter of U.S. adults say religion shapes how they vote a great deal or quite a bit
56% of Americans say religion shapes how they vote only ‘a little’ or ‘not at all’