Here are the openly non-religious candidates for state/federal office in 2024

They are atheists, humanists, lapsed Catholics, and more... and they're all on the ballot this November

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There’s a longstanding belief that openly non-religious candidates are unelectable in the United States. After all, only 60% of Americans say they would vote for a “generally well-qualified” atheist even if that person was from their own party, and there’s only one openly Humanist member of Congress (Rep. Jared Huffman).

But a new crop of openly non-religious candidates, both challengers and incumbents, are proving that belief is false.

(Image via Adobe Spark)

According to a new spreadsheet compiled by Friendly Atheist, with the help of the Center for Freethought Equality PAC (the political action arm of the American Humanist Association), I can tell you there are over 140 openly non-religious candidates running for office at the state and federal level, with several others still awaiting the results of their primaries. They use a variety of labels to describe themselves, but they are all people who don’t subscribe to organized religion.

Here is the list of openly non-religious candidates running for office in 2024.

A glimpse of the spreadsheet

Because primary season is not yet over in a few states, the list will be updated in the coming weeks leading to November’s elections. But a few things stand out right now:

• There are two Republicans on the list: New Hampshire State Rep. Brandon Phinney, who previously dabbled as a Libertarian and lost a race before switching back to the GOP, and Colorado State Rep. Ryan Armagost, who calls himself agnostic but says he believes in a “higher power.”

• There are seven “Nones” running for Congress as challengers.

• There are approximately 70 “Nones” running for re-election to the State House or State Senate. (Who knew there were that many openly non-religious lawmakers serving in office right now?!)

While many of the people on the list will not win their races, given that they are in ruby-red districts where they face a steep uphill climb, they have greater freedom to be themselves and not “play it safe” politically. By coming out as non-religious, while never making it the centerpiece of their campaigns, they’re making it much easier for others to follow suit in the future.

If you notice any errors or omissions in the list, please let me know and I’ll fix it.

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