As of 2020, 60.68% of Utahns are reported as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The LDS Church has historically reported membership numbers for the state of Utah but did not do so in 2021; a church spokesperson said this was because the numbers they had did not "accurately reflect membership numbers and trends" so the current number of members that the LDS church claims in Utah is unknown. Latter-day Saints make up about 49% (28% active) of the population in
Salt Lake County, making it the fifth minority LDS county in the state, joining Carbon, San Juan, Summit, and Grand. Salt Lake County Latter-day Saints mainly reside in the southern part of the valley (
Draper,
South Jordan, and parts of
West Jordan). Rural areas tend to have larger proportions of LDS, but nearly all counties have seen decreasing percentages affiliated with the church since 2009. Several explanations have been given to explain this decrease, such as relocation, members resigning, and a decreasing birth rate in the state. However, contrary to the declining membership trend,
Utah County, home of
Brigham Young University, has seen a modest uptick in membership since 2009 to nearly 85%, making it second only to
Morgan County at 86.1%. Though The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially maintains a policy of neutrality in regards to political parties, the church's doctrine has a strong regional influence on politics. Another doctrine effect can be seen in Utah's high
birth rate (the highest of any U.S. state, and 25 percent higher than the national average). The Latter-day Saints in Utah tend to have
conservative views when it comes to most political issues and the majority of voting-age Utahns are unaffiliated voters (60%) who vote overwhelmingly
Republican.
John McCain polled 62.5% in the
2008 presidential election while 70.9% of Utahns opted for
George W. Bush in 2004. In 2000, the Religious Congregations and Membership Study reported that the three largest denominational groups in Utah are Latter-day Saint,
Catholic, and
Evangelical Protestant. The LDS Church has the highest number of adherents in Utah (at 1,493,612 members), followed by the
Catholic Church with 97,085 members reported and the
Southern Baptist Convention, reporting 13,258 adherents. According to a report produced by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, the self-identified religious affiliations of Utahns over the age of 18 as of 2014 are: •
Christianity 73% •
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 55% •
Evangelicals 7% •
Mainline Protestants 6% •
Catholic 5% •
Black Protestant Churches <1% •
Eastern Orthodox <1% •
Jehovah's Witnesses <1% • Other Christian <1% • Unaffiliated 22% • Nothing in particular 18% •
Atheist 3% •
Agnostic 2% • Non-Christian Faiths 4% •
Islam 1% •
Buddhism 1% •
Hinduism <1% •
Judaism <1% • Other World Religions 1% ==Culture==