# How Americans view Pope Leo XIV's role in politics

Canonical page: https://data.verasight.io/politics/pope-leo-xivs-public-role-drew-limits/
Published: 2026-06-03

> Featured topic in Politics.

Roughly 48% have a favorable view of Pope Leo XIV, while majorities say President Trump should not publicly criticize the Pope and Pope Leo XIV should not make a vote public.

## Overview: Pope Leo XIV and politics

Adults viewed Pope Leo XIV more favorably than unfavorably, but that favorable baseline did not translate into open-ended support for every form of public political engagement.

Roughly 48% have a favorable opinion of Pope Leo XIV, compared with about 15% who have an unfavorable opinion. At the same time, 70% say it is inappropriate for President Trump to publicly criticize the Pope, and 75% say Pope Leo XIV should not make a vote public if he votes.

## Favorable views outnumber unfavorable views

About 47.9% of adults have a favorable opinion of Pope Leo XIV, including 28.1% with a very favorable opinion and 19.8% with a somewhat favorable opinion.

Unfavorable views are much smaller at 14.7%. Another 22.4% are neither favorable nor unfavorable, and 14.9% say they have no opinion or are not familiar enough.

## Criticism looks different depending on who is speaking

A 69.8% majority say it is inappropriate for President Trump to publicly criticize the Pope. This includes 52.3% who say it is very inappropriate.

Views are closer when the direction is reversed. About 49.8% say it is appropriate for the Pope to publicly criticize the U.S. president's policies, while 39.3% say it is inappropriate.

## Adults distinguish voting from public disclosure

After being told Pope Leo XIV is an American citizen, 77.1% say he should cast a vote in U.S. elections.

But voting support does not extend to public disclosure. If Pope Leo XIV votes, 74.8% say he should not make his vote public.

Taken together, the questions point to a distinction between private civic participation and public political signaling.

## Supporting evidence

### 47.9% have a favorable opinion of Pope Leo XIV.

Question: Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of Pope Leo XIV?

Note: 47.9% of adults have a favorable opinion of Pope Leo XIV, compared with 14.7% who have an unfavorable opinion.

Topline:

- Very favorable: 28.1%
- Neither favorable nor unfavorable: 22.4%
- Somewhat favorable: 19.8%
- No opinion / not familiar enough: 14.9%
- Somewhat unfavorable: 7.5%
- Very unfavorable: 7.2%

### 69.8% say it is inappropriate for President Trump to publicly criticize the Pope.

Question: How appropriate or inappropriate do you think it is for President Trump to publicly criticize the Pope?

Note: 69.8% say it is inappropriate for President Trump to publicly criticize the Pope.

Topline:

- Very inappropriate: 52.3%
- Somewhat inappropriate: 17.5%
- Somewhat appropriate: 11.6%
- Not sure: 9.8%
- Very appropriate: 8.8%

### 74.8% say Pope Leo XIV should not make his vote public if he votes.

Question: If Pope Leo XIV does vote, should he make his vote public?

Note: 74.8% say that if Pope Leo XIV votes, he should not make his vote public.

Topline:

- No: 74.8%
- Yes: 25.2%

## Methodology

- Mode: Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
- Population: US adults age 18+
- Field dates: 2026-04-21 → 2026-04-23
- Base (unweighted): 2,000
- Margin of error: +/- 2.3%
- Module: April 2026 Verasight Variety Survey
- Sponsor: Verasight
- Weight variable: weight
- Weighting targets: age, race/ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, metropolitan status

## Sources

- [Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of Pope Leo XIV?](https://reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126#q-14): reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126: 47.9% of adults have a favorable opinion of Pope Leo XIV, compared with 14.7% who have an unfavorable opinion.
- [How appropriate or inappropriate do you think it is for President Trump to publicly criticize the Pope?](https://reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126#q-15): reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126: 69.8% say it is inappropriate for President Trump to publicly criticize the Pope.
- [How appropriate or inappropriate do you think it is for the Pope to publicly criticize the U.S. president's policies?](https://reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126#q-16): reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126: 49.8% say it is appropriate for the Pope to publicly criticize U.S. presidential policy, while 39.3% say it is inappropriate.
- [Do you think he should cast a vote in U.S. elections?](https://reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126#q-17): reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126: After being told Pope Leo XIV is an American citizen, 77.1% say he should cast a vote in U.S. elections.
- [If Pope Leo XIV does vote, should he make his vote public?](https://reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126#q-18): reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126: 74.8% say that if Pope Leo XIV votes, he should not make his vote public.

## Citation

April 2026 Verasight Variety Survey, fielded April 21-23, 2026, N=2,000 US adults age 18+, +/- 2.3%.

Canonical question URL: [https://reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126#q-14](https://reports.verasight.io/r/variety10126#q-14)