America got its first pope! I was sitting next to one of about 30 Indiana University study abroad students on my flight back from Madrid on Saturday and my seat mate told me that her whole dorm was live streaming the smoke from the Sistine Chapel. As she recounted, everyone went crazy when “America won.” You love to see it!

I’m not just interested in the pope as part of this podcast’s religious community revival agenda (I kid). I’m interested in the pope because for the first time ever, he is a registered voter in Illinois. We’ve got some receipts from his primary voting record as well as his subtweets of the president on social media.

Also, some big Republican names are sitting out of marquee 2026 Senate races. Last week Georgia governor Brian Kemp said he’s declining to challenge Jon Ossoff, meaning the party is missing out on its strongest recruit for its strongest pickup prospect. Last month Chris Sununu also declined to run for New Hampshire’s open Senate seat.

With me to discuss the pope and the Senate are two dear friends of the pod, Mary Radcliffe and Nathaniel Rakich.

In the U.S., Trump’s popularity hit a new low of net -10 percentage points right as he clocked 100 days in office. Abroad, the political impact of Trump’s first 100 days is perhaps more tangible. In both Canada and Australia, the center-Left parties, which looked destined for defeat just months ago, came roaring back in recent elections.

A week ago, Canada’s Liberal Party won the most seats in parliament, ensuring Prime Minister Mark Carney would stay in office for the party’s fourth consecutive term in control of government. This past weekend, Australia’s Labour Party secured a second term for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, expanding its majority in what Australian analysts have been calling a landslide.

Joining me today are two friends of the podcast, author of The Writ, Eric Grenier, and author of 338 Canada, Philippe Fournier.

There’s rarely more attention paid to religion than when one pope passes and the College of Cardinals gathers to select another. Maybe it’s because the grandeur and secrecy of it all makes for a compelling news story, maybe it’s because 1.4 billion Catholics around the world really do care about the outcome, or maybe the weight of a millennia old tradition captures our imagination in a rapidly changing world.

Whatever the reason, it gives us on the GD POLITICS podcast an opportunity to reflect on the role that religion plays in society and politics today. And it’s a pretty complex story, at least in the US. After a rapid rise of people who don’t consider themselves part of any religion over the past 20 years, that trend line seems to have plateaued or maybe even reversed slightly.

On today’s podcast, I’m joined by someone who spends his days pouring over just about all the data out there on religion in America. Ryan Burge is a professor at Eastern Illinois University, he writes the Graphs About Religion Substack and until very recently was himself a Baptist Pastor.