What Religion Is Amy Klobuchar?
Most Americans became familiar with Amy Klobuchar after she announced her 2020 presidential campaign, but that wasn’t her first political milestone. She became Minnesota’s first elected female senator in 2006, but was she ever outspoken about her religious views?
Amy Klobuchar is a Congregationalist. She’s a member of the United Church of Christ, a Protestant denomination in the United States, which also counts former US president Barack Obama among its members.
Keep reading to learn more about Amy Klobuchar’s religious views and political career.
Amy Klobuchar’s Presidential Bid
Most people learned Amy Klobuchar’s name after she announced her candidacy in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, but Minnesotans were already familiar with her politics. She became the first female senator elected in this state in 2006, and she’s been holding her senate seat ever since.
Klobuchar announced her presidential run on February 10, 2019, in the middle of a relentless snowstorm at the Boom Island Park in Minneapolis. She received a lot of media coverage from the get-go – but for all the wrong reasons.
Several of her former staffers came forward accusing her of being harsh and abusive towards her employees. Klobuchar admitted that she “can be a tough boss and push people,” but said that’s only because she has high expectations of those who work for her.
Her campaign survived this hiccup, and The New York Times endorsed her as a candidate for president, along with Elizabeth Warren. She failed to gain significant support among primary voters and eventually decided to suspend her campaign a day before Super Tuesday.
Klobuchar presented herself as a moderate candidate, so it wasn’t much as a surprise when she endorsed Joe Biden for the presidency. He even considered her as a potential running mate, but she said it’s time to put a woman of color on the ticket, and withdrew herself from consideration.
Amy Klobuchar’s Religious Views
The majority of Minnesotans are Protestants, and that’s also the case with Amy Klobuchar. She’s a member of the United Church of Christ, a mainline Protestant denomination with the Congregational, Reformed, and Lutheran roots, but rarely discusses her faith in detail.
“I am someone that doesn’t talk about it a lot. I think it’s personal, and I respect the separation of church and state. So I don’t – you don’t see me talking about it all the time in my remarks,” Klobuchar told The New York Times.
This was one of the rare interviews where she was open about her religious beliefs, and described herself as someone who believes in God and has “a deep faith.” After becoming a Senate member, Klobuchar joined the Prayer Breakfast but refused to be involved with the National Prayer Breakfast in 2020, along with several fellow Democrats.
Being religious didn’t stop Klobuchar from supporting reproductive rights for women and LGBT equality, and she explained her stance on these issues on her official website:
“In some states, you can get married on Sunday and fired from your job on Monday because of who you love – that’s not right. I was proud to co-sponsor the bipartisan Equality Act the day it was introduced, which will ensure that LGBTQ people receive equal protection under the law.”
The United Church of Christ
Amy Klobuchar is a member of the United Church of Christ, a protestant church known for its liberal views on social issues, including civil rights, LGBT rights, and women’s rights.
The UCC is one of the largest Christian denominations in the US to support same-sex marriage, but this decision didn’t sit well with some of their members. Several conservative congregations cut their ties with UCC, but they kept attracting progressives who share their values.
The former president of the United States Barack Obama is the most prominent member of this church, and the UCC has many more notable politicians among its ranks. In addition to Klobuchar, several former and current senators, including Daniel Akaka, Maggie Hassan, and Mark Kirk, are also members of the UCC.
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