(RNS) — A new report from Pew Research found that White Christians, who played a key role in returning Donald Trump to the White House, are losing confidence in President Trump’s policies.
President Donald Trump speaks during the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 5, 2026. (Evan Vucci/Associated Press)
Just over half (58%) of White evangelicals said they support most or all of Trump’s policies, down from 66% when he took office in 2025. Similar declines were seen among White Catholics, who dropped from 51% last year to 46% this year, and White Protestants who are not evangelical, who dropped from 46% to 33%, according to the report, released Monday (Feb. 9).
Based on a survey of 8,512 Americans conducted Jan. 20-26, the report also found that White Christians are less confident that Trump acts ethically in office than they were a year ago. Less than half (40%) of White evangelicals have confidence that Trump acts ethically, down from 55% in 2025. White Catholic confidence in Trump’s ethics dropped from 39% to 34%, while White nonevangelical Protestants’ confidence dropped from 38% to 26%.
White Christians in all three groups are still more likely to support Trump’s policies than Americans overall (27%). They also have more confidence in his ethics than Americans overall (21%).
Hispanic Catholics (18%), the religiously unaffiliated (13%), and Black Protestants (6%) were least likely to support Trump’s policies. Those groups were also least likely to have confidence in Trump’s ethics.
Because of their presence in swing states, White Catholics and White nonevangelical Protestants played a key role in the 2024 presidential election. More than half (58%) of White nonevangelical Protestants voted for Trump, as did 62% of White Catholics and 81% of White evangelicals, according to Pew Research data.
Pew’s most recent report found that White Christians remain strong supporters of Trump, though that support has declined. Sixty-nine percent of White evangelicals said they approve of how Trump is handling his job, down from 78% last year. Just over half (52%) of White Catholics approve of Trump’s job performance, down from 59% last year, while 46% of nonevangelical White Protestants approved, down from 57%. The unaffiliated (24%), Hispanic Catholics (23%), and Black Protestants (12%) are least likely to approve of Trump’s job performance.
Overall, 37% of Americans approve of how Trump is handling his job.
The difference among faith groups reflects the partisan divide among American Christians, with White Protestants and White Catholics more likely to side with the GOP, while Christians of color, the unaffiliated, and people of other faiths are more likely to side with Democrats.
