---
title: "Most U.S. Catholics view Pope Leo favorably; many think Trump has been too critical of him"
description: "About eight-in-ten U.S. Catholics view Pope Leo XIV favorably, though opinions on the tension between Leo and President Trump split sharply along party lines."
date: "2026-06-18"
authors:
  - name: "Gregory A. Smith"
    job_title: "Senior Associate Director, Research"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/gregory-a-smith/"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/06/18/most-us-catholics-view-pope-leo-favorably-many-think-trump-has-been-too-critical-of-him/"
categories:
  - "Catholicism"
  - "Pope Leo XIV"
  - "Religion & Politics"
  - "Religion & Politics"
---

# Most U.S. Catholics view Pope Leo favorably; many think Trump has been too critical of him

![A baseball fan takes a photo with a mural of Pope Leo XIV before a White Sox game at Chicago's Rate Field on May 25, 2025. (Ben Hsu/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/SR_26.06.18_us-catholics_featured.jpg?w=640)

About eight-in-ten U.S. Catholics (78%) have a favorable view of Pope Leo XIV, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. That’s [down slightly from summer 2025](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/09/12/more-than-8-in-10-u-s-catholics-view-pope-leo-favorably/), when 84% of U.S. Catholics expressed a favorable opinion of the American-born pope.

The share of Catholics who have a positive view of Leo today is similar to the share who had a favorable view of his predecessor, Pope Francis, during the last years of Francis’ pontificate.

### About 8 in 10 U.S. Catholics view Pope Leo XIV favorably

*% of U.S. Catholics expressing a favorable view of recent popes*

|  | Very favorable | Mostly favorable | NET favorable |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| May 1987 | 48 | 43 | 91 | St. John Paul II |
| May 1990 | 53 | 40 | 93 |  |
| Jun 1996 | 49 | 44 | 93 |  |
| Jul 2005 | 17 | 50 | 67 | Benedict XVI |
| Aug 2007 | 31 | 43 | 74 |  |
| Mar 2008 | 36 | 38 | 74 |  |
| Apr 2008 | 49 | 34 | 83 |  |
| Feb 2013 | 32 | 41 | 74 |  |
| Mar 2013 | 43 | 41 | 84 | Francis |
| Sep 2013 | 37 | 42 | 79 |  |
| Feb 2014 | 51 | 34 | 85 |  |
| Feb 2015 | 57 | 33 | 90 |  |
| Jun 2015 | 52 | 34 | 86 |  |
| Oct 2015 | 62 | 20 | 81 |  |
| Jan 2017 | 47 | 40 | 87 |  |
| Jan 2018 | 45 | 39 | 84 |  |
| Sep 2018 | 30 | 42 | 72 |  |
| Jan 2020 | 35 | 42 | 77 |  |
| Feb 2020 | 32 | 49 | 82 |  |
| Mar 2021 | 31 | 52 | 82 |  |
| Sep 2021 | 34 | 49 | 83 |  |
| Feb 2024 | 26 | 49 | 75 |  |
| Feb 2025 | 23 | 55 | 78 |  |
| Aug 2025 | 37 | 47 | 84 | Leo XIV |
| Jun 2026 | 32 | 46 | 78 |  |

Note: Estimates from February 2020 and later come from American Trends Panel surveys conducted mainly online. Estimates from January 2020 and earlier come from random-digit-dial telephone surveys.

Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted May 26-June 1, 2026.

**About this research**

This Pew Research Center analysis explores U.S. Catholics’ views of Pope Leo XIV and how Leo and U.S. President Donald Trump approach each other.

#### Why did we do this?

Pew Research Center conducts high-quality research to inform the public, journalists and leaders. Studying U.S. Catholics’ views of the pope is a key part of the Center’s long-standing research.

[Learn more about Pew Research Center](https://www.pewresearch.org/about/) and our [religion research](https://www.pewresearch.org/topic/religion/).

#### How did we do this?

This analysis includes findings from a survey of 9,750 U.S. adults who are part of the Center’s [American Trends Panel (ATP)](https://www.pewresearch.org/the-american-trends-panel/), including 1,848 Catholics. The survey was conducted May 26-June 1, 2026. It has an overall margin of error of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points for results based on the full sample of Catholic respondents.

Here are the [questions used for this analysis](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/SR_26.06.18_us-catholics_questionnaire.pdf), [along with responses](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/SR_26.06.18_us-catholics_topline.pdf) and the [survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/SR_26.06.18_us-catholics_methodology.pdf).

The survey was conducted from May 26 to June 1, in the wake of public tension between Leo and President Donald Trump over the conflict in Iran and other matters. In April, Leo [spoke out against war](https://apnews.com/article/pope-leo-usisraeli-war-iran-7309c5df6c7312b942e0510ea65502cb) and blamed it on unnamed leaders having a “delusion of omnipotence.” Trump [criticized Leo on social media](https://apnews.com/article/trump-pope-leo-xiv-02f6b4554ea4b83af02af15987ae1f2d), saying the pope was “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy.”

When asked about Pope Leo’s approach to the Trump administration, U.S. Catholics are split. While 19% say Leo has been too critical of the Trump administration, 16% say he hasn’t been critical enough. Another 35% say Leo is striking the right balance, and 30% say they are not sure, have no opinion or have never heard of Leo.

### About half of U.S. Catholics say Donald Trump has been too critical of Pope Leo

| % of U.S. Catholics who say Pope Leo XIV has been … | Too critical of Trump administration | Not critical enough of Trump administration | Striking the right balance | Not sure/No answer/Never heard of Pope Leo |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  | 19% | 16% | 35% | 30% |
| % of U.S. Catholics who say Donald Trump has been … | Too critical of Pope Leo XIV | Not critical enough of Pope Leo XIV | Striking the right balance | Not sure/No answer/Never heard of Pope Leo |
|  | 51% | 4% | 14% | 31% |

Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted May 26-June 1, 2026.

By contrast, when asked about Trump’s approach to Pope Leo, far more Catholics say Trump has been too critical of Leo (51%) than say he hasn’t been critical enough (4%) or is striking the right balance (14%).

#### Most Catholics, regardless of religiousness or demographics, view Pope Leo favorably

Many U.S. Catholics have a positive view of Pope Leo, including those who regularly go to Mass and those who seldom or never do. Among those who attend Mass at least weekly, 85% view Leo favorably. That compares with 79% of Catholics who go to Mass once or twice a month or a few times a year, and 73% of Catholics who rarely or never go.

Large majorities of both White and Hispanic Catholics and both Catholic men and women also view Leo favorably. The survey did not have enough Black or Asian Catholics to report their views separately.

### Views of Pope Leo among U.S. Catholics

*% of U.S. Catholics who say their view of Pope Leo XIV is …*

|  | Favorable | Unfavorable | Never heard of Pope Leo | No answer | Group |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| All U.S. Catholics | 78% | 12% | 9% | 1% | 1 |
| Attend Mass at least weekly | 85% | 11% | 4% | <1% | 2 |
| Attend monthly/yearly | 79% | 11% | 9% | 1% | 2 |
| Attend seldom/never | 73% | 14% | 12% | 1% | 2 |
| White | 80% | 15% | 4% | 1% | 3 |
| Hispanic | 75% | 9% | 15% | 2% | 3 |
| Men | 78% | 16% | 5% | 1% | 4 |
| Women | 78% | 9% | 11% | 1% | 4 |

Note: The survey did not have enough Black or Asian Catholics to report their views separately. White Catholics include those who report being only one race and are not Hispanic. Hispanics are of any race.

Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted May 26-June 1, 2026.

#### Differences between Catholic Republicans and Democrats

### More Catholic Democrats than Republicans view Pope Leo favorably

*% of U.S. Catholics who have a __ view of Pope Leo XIV*

|  | Rep/lean Rep favorable | Rep/lean Rep unfavorable | Dem/lean Dem favorable | Dem/lean Dem unfavorable |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 08/2025 | 84% | 6% | 89% | 2% |
| 06/2026 | 72% | 22% | 84% | 5% |

Note: Those who did not answer are not shown.

Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted May 26-June 1, 2026.

Most Catholics in both partisan coalitions have positive views of Pope Leo. But Catholic Democrats and independents who lean toward the Democratic Party express somewhat more favorable views of Leo than Catholic Republicans and Republican leaners do.

We found a [similar pattern](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/02/25/pope-francis-and-public-opinion-key-findings-from-our-surveys/) during the latter years of Francis’ pontificate.

(In recent years, Catholics have been relatively evenly divided between the two parties. In the new survey, 51% of Catholic respondents identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party, while 45% identify with or lean toward the GOP.)

The new survey also shows that far more Catholic Democrats say Trump has been too critical of Pope Leo than say Leo has been too critical of Trump (70% vs. 3%).

Catholic Republicans are more divided. About a third (32%) say Trump has been too critical of Pope Leo. And 39% say Leo has been too critical of Trump.

### Catholic Republicans are far more likely than Democrats to say Pope Leo XIV has been too critical of the Trump administration

| Among Catholics who are Democrats or lean Democratic,  % who say ... | Trump has been too critical of Leo | Trump hasn't been critical enough of Leo | Trump has been striking the right balance | Not sure/No answer/Never heard of Pope Leo |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  | 70 | 2 | 2 | 26 |
| Among Catholics who are Democrats or lean Democratic, % who say ... | Leo has been too critical of Trump administration | Leo hasn't been critical enough of Trump administration | Leo has been striking the right balance | Not sure/No answer/Never heard of Pope Leo |
|  | 3 | 26 | 44 | 27 |
| Among Catholics who are Republican or lean Republican, % who say ... | Trump has been too critical of Leo | Trump hasn't been critical enough of Leo | Trump has been striking the right balance | Not sure/No answer/Never heard of Pope Leo |
|  | 32 | 6 | 28 | 34 |
| Among Catholics who are Republican or lean Republican, % who say ... | Leo has been too critical of Trump administration | Leo hasn't been critical enough of Trump administration | Leo has been striking the right balance | Not sure / No answer / Never heard of Pope Leo |
|  | 39 | 5 | 27 | 28 |

Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted May 26-June 1, 2026.

We can also combine people’s answers to these questions to gauge their views of both Leo and Trump. The balance of opinion among Catholic Democrats is fairly one-sided: 68% say Trump has been too critical of Leo but that Leo hasn’t been overly critical of Trump.

Catholic Republicans are again more divided:

- 28% say *Leo has been too critical of Trump* but *Trump hasn’t been too critical of Leo.*

- 21% say *Trump has been too critical of Leo* but *Leo hasn’t been too critical of Trump.*

- 11% say *both Trump and Leo have been too critical* of the other.

- 40% say *neither Trump nor Leo has been too critical* of the other or did not answer the questions.

### Most Catholic Democrats say Trump has been too critical of Pope Leo XIV but Leo hasn’t been too critical of Trump

*% of U.S. Catholics who say …*

|  | Trump has been too critical of Pope Leo | Pope Leo has been too critical of Trump | Both have been too critical of each other | Neither has been too critical of the other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Rep/lean Rep | 21% | 28% | 11% | 40% |
| Dem/lean Dem | 68% | 1% | 2% | 29% |

Note: One question asked if Donald Trump has been “too critical” of Pope Leo XIV, has “not been critical enough” or has been “striking the right balance.” The other asked if Leo has been “too critical” of the Trump administration, has “not been critical enough” or has been “striking the right balance.” The “Neither” shares include everyone who didn’t answer either question with “too critical,” including those who were not asked the questions because they’ve never heard of Pope Leo.

Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted May 26-June 1, 2026.

***Related: ****[Catholics in Latin America generally have positive views of Pope Leo](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/06/18/catholics-in-latin-america-generally-have-positive-views-of-pope-leo/)*

*Note: Here are the [questions used for this analysis](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/SR_26.06.18_us-catholics_questionnaire.pdf), [along with responses](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/SR_26.06.18_us-catholics_topline.pdf) and the [survey methodology](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/SR_26.06.18_us-catholics_methodology.pdf).*