Pope Francis, described by some as liberal and even "woke," looks to be far less favorably viewed than earlier in his role.
According to Breitbart, the latest The Economist/YouGov poll revealed that the pope's approval numbers are evenly split on the "very favorable" and "very negative" metrics.
The poll provided a stunning picture as to how Americans view the Argentinian pope, with 12% hold a "very favorable" view of the pope while 12% hold a "very negative" view.
Thirty-one percent hold a "somewhat favorable" view of the pope, while 14% indicated they hold a "somewhat unfavorable" view.
NEW: Economist/YouGov Poll
% who have a very or somewhat favorable opinion of the following:
Pope Francis
U.S. adult citizens: 43%
Democrats: 60%
Republicans: 34%The Catholic Church
U.S. adult citizens: 38%
Democrats: 33%
Republicans: 54%https://t.co/JWfv1HNldQ pic.twitter.com/Px3dvxf9FM— YouGov America (@YouGovAmerica) September 7, 2023
Notably, Pope Francis scored his highest marks with liberals, with 57% of self-proclaimed liberals saying they hold a favorable or somewhat favorable view of him.
The pope scored extremely low marks with conservatives, with only 17% stating the same.
Many believe that the pope's views on issues like abortion give him a better rating with the left, and the fact that he takes meetings with Catholic politicians like Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) who support abortion rights.
Woke Pope Francis granted a private audience in the Vatican to U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Saturday, just two weeks after the House passage of the most radical pro-abortion legislation ever introduced. https://t.co/PgE93nS4n3
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) October 10, 2021
Breitbart noted:
Similarly, 40 percent of Republicans who have an opinion as to the pope’s ideological leanings said he was “very liberal” or “liberal” whereas only 14 percent of Democrats said the same. Fewer than one in five of either group said they think the pope is “conservative” or “very conservative.”
Any pope has a great deal of influence over the Catholic Church, and respondents were split on their opinion of the church under Pope Francis.
Breitbart added:
Regarding how the Francis papacy has affected Americans’ opinion of the Catholic Church, 16 percent said that he has made them think “more positively” about the Church and an identical 16 percent said he has made them think “less positively” about the Church.
As far as his influence on U.S. affairs, nearly half of respondents, 46%, said they believe the pope should "stay out" of America's issues.
Only 25% said they think the pope should be active in U.S. affairs.
We encourage you to share this article on Twitter and Facebook. Just click those two links - you'll see why.
It's important to share the news to spread the truth. Most people won't.