Republican and Democratic support for school prayer diverged sharply over four decades

Evidence

For example, data from the General Social Surveys shows that in the early 1970s Republicans and Democrats were virtually identical in their views about prayer and Bible reading in public school. Approximately 68 percent of Republicans and Democrats alike disagreed with the Supreme Court decision to eliminate state-mandated Bible reading or prayer from schools. By 2016, 69 percent of Republicans still felt that way (a slight increase) compared to only 49 percent of Democrats (a nearly 20 point reduction). — Andrew L. Whitehead; Samuel L. Perry, Taking America Back for God, 606

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the book’s broader thesis that Christian nationalism works as a symbolic boundary distinguishing partisans, paralleling how the issue functions as identity signaling rather than stable belief. — connects to: A narrow majority of Americans still oppose removing school prayer and Bible reading — Andrew L. Whitehead; Samuel L. Perry, Taking America Back for God, 186