Pope Francis “broadly popular” among US Catholics throughout his papacy

Pope Francis, now hospitalised with severe respiratory issues, has been “broadly popular among the nation’s Catholics throughout his tenure,” according to multiple surveys conducted by Pew Research over the past 12 years.

Pew has assessed US Catholic opinion about the pope since 2013, finding that “at least 80 per cent” of the country’s Catholics “have expressed a favourable opinion of him in 10 of the 15” surveys the research institute has administered on the topic.

Overall, 53 per cent of US adults regard Pope Francis either very or mostly favourably.

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Pope Francis has on balance enjoyed greater popularity than his immediate predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, whose approval rating was at 67 per cent in 2005, the first year of his pontificate; 74 per cent in 2007, 2008 and 2013; and 84 per cent in 2008.

In contrast, Pope Francis’ ratings have ranged from 72 per cent in 2018 to as high as 90 per cent in 2015.

Pew’s latest survey on US Catholic views of Pope Francis—which polled 9,544 adults online and by phone 3-9 February, just days before the pope’s 14 February admission to Rome’s Gemelli hospital—found his approval had increased to 78 per cent, up from 75 per cent at the same time last year. From 2020-2021, 82-83 per cent of the nation’s Catholics reported viewing Pope Francis favourably.

Both Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI were outranked in Pew’s surveys by Pope John Paul II, whose ratings were 91 per cent in 1987, and 93 per cent in 1990 and 1996.

At the same time, Pope Francis’ overall favourable ratings are marked by what Pew called a “large partisan divide” throughout the 2013-2025 survey period.

In 2013, 84 per cent of Republican or Republican-leaning US Catholics approved of Pope Francis, compared to 77 per cent of their Democratic or Democratic-leaning peers.

By 2018, the trend had reversed, and the gap had widened, with 83 per cent of the latter and 61 per cent of the former approving.

As of 2025, 88 per cent of Democratic or Democratic-leaning US Catholics view the pope favourably, with 69 per cent of their Republican or Republican-leaning peers expressing the same.

A February 2024 survey conducted by Pew showed that 42 per cent of US Catholics viewed Pope Francis as representing a major change in direction for the Catholic Church. Among those who regarded him unfavourably, 54 per cent said Pope Francis marked a major change for the church.

Still, Pope Francis’ popularity spans several demographic groups among US Catholics, including the following: men (79 per cent) and women (77 per cent); white (non-Hispanic) and Hispanic, both 78 per cent; and ages 18-29 (79 per cent), 30-49 (77 per cent), 50-64 (78 per cent), and 65 and over (78 per cent).

In addition, the pope is highly regarded by US Catholics regardless of their level of Mass attendance, scoring approval ratings of 80 per cent with those attending weekly or more and of 77 per cent among those attending monthly, annually, seldom or never.

Drawing on data from both its Religion in Latin America project and Spring 2024 Global Attitudes Survey, Pew also reported that most Latin American Catholics view Pope Francis—a native of Argentina—favourably, although those shares have declined from 2013-2024.

In 2013, the pope enjoyed a 98 per cent rating among Argentina’s Catholics, which fell to 74 per cent as of 2024. Other downturns reported among Latin American Catholics during the same period include those in Colombia (93 to 88 per cent), Brazil (92 to 84 per cent), Mexico (86 to 80 per cent), Peru (83 to 78 per cent) and Chile (79 to 64 per cent).