A new Democratic primary poll out of Wisconsin puts a number on something that should alarm all of us. Francesca Hong, a Democratic Socialists of America member running for governor, wins 67 percent of the vote among primary voters who call themselves atheist or agnostic. Even more interestingly, these non-religious poll-takers were the largest religious category in the survey of primary voters. The same divide showed up in New York last November, where Zohran Mamdani carried 52 percent of religiously unaffiliated voters while losing Jewish voters to Andrew Cuomo by 30 points and Catholics by 20.
The question becomes why are faithless voters flocking to socialist-aligned candidates?
These voters are confessing two things: that political ideology has replaced religion for them and that they prefer government dependence over community help.
For most of American history, the person who got sick, lost a job, or fell behind on rent had somewhere specific to turn: a congregation, a fraternal lodge, or a neighbor who noticed and helped. But as weekly religious attendance in America has fallen from 42 percent in 2000 to 30 percent today, so has community showing up for each other, and it appears that political ideology, to some extent, has replaced religious services for many Americans. Americans are increasingly identifying with their political party membership over their religious identity, driving wedges in families, neighborhoods and friend groups.
However, rather than rebuild those connections and community support, a growing bloc of mostly non-religious voters has decided the fix is to hand the job over to Madison and DC politicians and bureaucrats. That is the actual appeal of a candidate like Hong or Mamdani for the nonreligious: the promise that no one ever has to ask a neighbor for help, because they believe government will handle it instead.
This is a much worse deal than it sounds. A government program, if it actually works, does not know your name. It does not notice when you stop showing up to work, when your kid needs shoes, or when you have gone quiet for a week because something is wrong. To the government, you are nothing but a number on a growing wait list for services that might never come. But, to a community willing to help, you are a friend, a neighbor, or a fellow church member.
It is easier for these nonreligious voters to vote for the promise of a subsidized program than to organize a meal train. It is easier to demand free rent than to check on the widow next door.
This is not an argument that secular people are incapable of generosity, or that every churchgoer lives out what they preach. Plenty of nonbelievers show up for their neighbors, and there are churchgoers who do not. But socialism at its root pulls people away from religion, for a reason. Socialism cannot exist without government dependence, and the stronger true community support is, the weaker socialism’s roots become.
Now is the time for people to start showing up for each other again, so fewer of them ever consider the government doing it instead.
Socialism will fail, as history has proven.
Government programs will fail, as history has proven.
But communities showing up and taking care of our neighbors will not fail, and it will always be faster, more effective, and more compassionate than socialism and government dependency.
