Anglicans have kept faith with the Conservative party, according to a new academic study. The staunch support of Anglicans has acted as a “buffer” against the volatile politics of modern Britain, University of Exeter research found.
It uncovered “disproportionately high” support for the Conservatives among Anglicans, stating they are “more likely to feel close to and vote for the Tories”.
The research concluded ties between the “Church of England and the Conservative Party faithful remain intact despite the decline in partisan loyalties”. At a time when many voters switch loyalties, Anglicans are a “pocket of resistance” to such changes in allegiance.
Dr Kolpinskaya examined responses to the 2009-22 UK Household Longitudinal Study – which pre-dates the rise of Reform UK. Nearly nine out of 10 Anglicans who took part in its survey said their feelings of closeness to the Conservative party had not changed; 39% said they intended to vote for it.
Church attendance has dropped sharply in recent decades but the study highlights the enduring power of Anglican identity.
The research, published in the Parliamentary Affairs journal, states: “Anglicanism remains the largest religious denomination in Great Britain – with over one in five adult Britons self-identifying with the Church of England. The number of self-identifying Anglicans of just over 15 million people is comparable to the number of votes cast for the Conservative Party in 2019 – just under 14 million.
“As a sizeable part of the electorate, they have a significant capacity for influencing electoral outcomes.”
Political scientist Ekaterina Kolpinskaya said: “The analysis shows a rather traditional picture of the Conservative Party faithful who feel a strong affinity with the party. It shows it is wrong to ignore religion as a predictor of core party support in modern Great Britain.”
The academic described the Conservative party as a “flagship organisation that unites traditional social values with a vision of national identity” which has struck a chord with many Anglicans.
Her study acknowledged society has become more secular but found religion “continues to be socially and politically influential”.
People were more likely to feel “close to the Conservative party” it found if they identified as Anglican, Presbyterian, Hindu or Jewish. Other factors included being older, married, having an “English national identity”, feeling optimistic about your financial future and not having an academic degree.
In contrast, people felt significantly less likely to vote Conservative if they were female, Muslim, working in a “manual, partly skilled or unskilled”, and struggling financially.