A growing number of Kentuckians don’t affiliate with any religion, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center. It’s part of a nationwide trend that should get the attention of politicians.
Between 2007 and 2014, the number of Kentuckians who considered themselves to be religiously “unaffiliated” increased from 12 to 22 percent, according to the report. That includes atheists, agnostics, and people who say they subscribe to no religion in particular.
Al Cross, the director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky, says if the trend continues, someday politicians might not play the religion card as much.
“If this continues to evolve this way with the population being less religious then it’s probably going to be to politicians’ advantage to not emphasize religion so much because it will turn off more voters," Cross said.
According to Pew, people who don’t identify with a religion are less likely to vote than religious people. Millenials are the most likely demographic to identify as religiously unaffiliated.
