Christian Headlines Blog Christian Blog and Commentary

Get guidance on Bible study from C.S. Lewis - Free Course!

Record Number of Americans would Vote for Atheist President

  • Amanda Casanova

    Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and…

    More
  • Updated Jul 15, 2015

A record number of Americans say they would vote for an atheist president, according to a Gallup poll. According to the poll, 58 percent of Americans would vote for a qualified atheist candidate.

Dr. Alex McFarland, however, warned that an atheist president could veer from the founding principles of America.

"John Locke, literally one of the most brilliant thinkers of the past 500 years, said that promises, covenants and oaths, which are the bonds of human society, have no hold on an atheist," McFarland said. 

McFarland is expected to discuss the topic at a Truth for a New Generation apologetics conference in the fall. In a debate called “America’s Future: Better with or without God?” McFarland will debate David Silverman, president of American Atheists.

“Without God and absolute truth, our freedoms have no secure basis," McFarland said. "Therefore, an atheist could not fully support our Constitution and Declaration of Independence. Americans think they would be comfortable electing a President with no faith convictions or religious beliefs, but they would quickly find that the freedoms and liberties they now enjoy would shift dramatically."

In 2012, about 54 percent of Americans said they would vote for an atheist president, Charisma News reports. In 1958, only 18 percent said they would vote for an atheist president.

Publication date: July 15, 2015