Inside the Data on Christian Nationalism in America | PRRI CEO Melissa Deckman

What do the numbers actually tell us about Christian nationalism in the United States?

In this episode of Faithful Politics, Will Wright and Pastor Josh Burtram sit down with Melissa Deckman, CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), to walk through the latest national data on Christian nationalism and what researchers are seeing across the country.

Deckman explains how PRRI measures Christian nationalism, why the concept is often misunderstood in public debate, and what the data reveals about who tends to hold these views. The conversation explores how religion, identity, and politics intersect in American life, along with the demographic and cultural patterns researchers are tracking.

They also discuss how survey questions are designed, why some people react strongly to the label “Christian nationalism,” and how researchers try to measure belief systems without reducing complex identities to a single label.

For anyone trying to understand the role of religion in American politics today, this conversation offers a clear look at what the research actually shows. 

Recommended Links and Resources

• PRRI – Public Religion Research Institute: https://www.prri.org
• Mapping Christian Nationalism Across the 50 States: Insights from PRRI’s 2025 American Values Atlas: https://prri.org/research/mapping-christian-nationalism-across-the-50-states-insights-from-prris-2025-american-values-atlas/

Guest Bio

Melissa Deckman is the CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), one of the nation’s leading research organizations studying the intersection of religion, culture, and politics. She previously served as the Louis L. Goldstein Professor of Public Affairs at Washington College and is a political scientist whose work focuses on religion, gender, and civic engagement in American political life.