The 2024 presidential race will intensify in the coming weeks and months as we enter the primary season. The election season begins in earnest with the Iowa Caucuses on Jan. 15 and the New Hampshire primary eight days later.  

The Republican primary field has narrowed in recent months following a string of debates — although most polls show former President Donald Trump with a huge lead. 

President Joe Biden, meanwhile, faces some primary challengers, but is expected to be the Democratic Party’s nominee once again. 

As always, moral and cultural issues linked to religious faith are playing a major role in the White House campaign. Thus, here is some basic information to ponder about the major candidates.

REPUBLICANS

Donald Trump — Former president of the United States

Age: 77

Religion: Raised mainline Presbyterian, now a nondenominational Christian 

Bio: Trump is a real-estate mogul who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Despite a myriad of legal issues and the January 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol, Trump remains the GOP’s frontrunner for the nomination.

On religion: “I grew up going to church with my family in New York City. My parents taught me the importance of faith and prayer from a young age. Though I was confirmed at a Presbyterian church as a child, I now consider myself to be a non-denominational Christian.” 

Ron DeSantis — Governor of Florida

Age: 45

Religion: Catholic 

Bio: DeSantis has served as Florida’s governor since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Florida’s 6th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2013 to 2018.

On religion: “Our household is a Christ-centered household.” 

Nikki Haley — Former U.N. Ambassador and governor of South Carolina

Age: 51

Religion: Raised Sikh, converted to Christianity (Methodist)

Bio: Haley is a politician and diplomat who served as governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017 and as the 29th U.S. ambassador to the United Nations for two years, from January 2017 through December 2018, under Trump. She is the first Indian American to serve in a presidential cabinet.

On religion: “When you have God, you quickly understand there's nothing you can't overcome.” 

Vivek Ramaswamy — Tech entrepreneur and political commentator

Age: 38

Religion: Hindu  

Bio: Ramaswamy is an entrepreneur who founded Roivant Sciences, a pharmaceutical company, in 2014. If elected, he would be the U.S.’s first Hindu president.

On religion: “I’m a person of faith. Evangelical Christians … are also people of faith. We found commonality in our need to defend religious liberty, to stand for faith and patriotism and stand unapologetically for the fact that we are one nation under God.”

Chris Christie — Former governor of New Jersey

Age: 61

Religion: Catholic  

Bio: Christie once worked as a federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey from 2002 to 2008.

On religion: “My church has a teaching against birth control. Does that make me an awful Catholic, because I believed and practiced that function during part of my life? I don’t think so, but I’m only going to find out when it’s my time to be judged.” …

DEMOCRATS

Joe Biden — President of the United States

Age: 81 

Religion: Catholic 

Bio: Biden is the 46th and current president of the United States. An ideologically moderate member of the current Democratic Party, he previously served as the 47th vice president from 2009 to 2017 under President Barack Obama and represented Delaware in the U.S. Senate from 1973 to 2009. He is only the second Catholic in American history — after John F. Kennedy in 1960 — to occupy the White House.

On religion: “Like so many people, my faith has been the bedrock foundation of my life: it’s provided me comfort in moments of loss and tragedy, it’s kept me grounded and humbled in times of triumph and joy.” 

Marianne Williamson — Author, activist and self-proclaimed “spiritual adviser”

Age: 71 

Religion: Raised Jewish, now considers herself “spiritual”  

Bio: Williamson began her career as spiritual leader of the Church of Today, a Unity Church in Warren, Mich. She has written several self-help books, including “A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles” in 1992, which became a New York Times best seller. She was launched into prominence by Oprah Winfrey as a frequent guest on her daytime TV show and later becoming known as her "spiritual advisor.”

On religion: “You know the Jews say the Messiah is coming and the Christians say the Messiah came and [Albert] Einstein said there is no time. So this whole idea he’s coming, he came — I think we’re living in a time where the official take on Jesus is not particularly relevant to me.”  

CONTINUE READING: “2024 Presidential Election — Everything You Need To Know About The Candidates” by Clemente Lisi at Religion Unplugged.