Do the Amish vote? What you need to know about the small but growing US population

(The Center Square) – With the presidential election less than two weeks away, Amish communities are experiencing déjà vu.

That’s because efforts to encourage voting among populations that have traditionally abstained from doing so are stronger than ever.

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Historically, the Amish are family-oriented, and their religious and cultural traditions shape their political views. Their faith-based beliefs about violence, power, and political participation often prevent them from participating in elections.

While voter registration efforts remain high, it is difficult to estimate how many members of the Amish community will register. There are about 400,000 of them throughout the country in 654 separate localities. The largest populations are found in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Wisconsin, according to the study. Young Center for Amish Research.

Although small, their contribution to the outcome of the elections can be enormous.

Although Ohio and Indiana voted conservative in 2020, Trump lost Wisconsin. Biden flipped the state by 20,682 votes, where the Amish population, including children, is 26,365. according to the Youth Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies.

Trump also lost Pennsylvania in 2020 by 80,555 votes.. The estimated size of the Amish community in the Commonwealth is more than 92,000 people, the largest community in the country.

Trump is also not the first Republican candidate to court the community. In 2004, former President George W. Bush found himself deadlocked in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and Holmes County, Ohio. In this election data shows Amish participation increased by 13%. By 2016, this figure had dropped to 7% and 8%, respectively.

Postdoctoral fellow Corey Anderson said in an email to The Center Square that it is unclear whether a significant new number of Amish are registering to vote. He said that this would most likely only be clear after the elections, referring to him recent article focused on the Amish vote in Pennsylvania.

In it, Anderson writes that voting by mail could ease the travel needs of the Amish community, whose iconic horse-drawn carriages have become synonymous with their culture. Long hours and a self-imposed sense of shame over the moral ambiguity of voting make the anonymity of voting by mail more attractive.

“However, even when mailing ballots, the act of registering to vote can still seem to ordinary registrants as if they were signing their name on a blank check,” Anderson writes, describing the pervasive trust that can leave Amish voters wondering: “ What else is this government signing me up for that they don’t tell me?”

Scott Presler, a conservative activist and founder of Early Vote Action, honed the Amish vote by going door to door, offering them rides or helping them register to vote. It also encourages voting by mail.

“For our wonderful Amish in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and across the state, we will protect your raw milk, your dairy products, your agriculture, your school choice, your religious freedom, your ability to have ten wonderful children in your family,” Pressler said at Trump rally in ButlerPa.

Link to Amos Millerdairy farmer from Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania, who was banned from selling raw dairy products by the state Department of Agriculture.

Although their numbers are still small, Amish communities are spreading westward. As families move to these new areas, others tend to follow, with the overall population doubling over the past two decades.

Since 2000, settlements have been built in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming, with a total population of 2,400 people as of 2024.

The rise of Amish communities in states that typically vote blue deserves some attention. The Amish population in New York City has increased from 4,505 in 2000 to 24,325 in 2024. according to the Youth Center.

It’s the same with Michigan: in 2000, the Amish population was reported to be 8,495, and by 2024 it will increase to 20,690.

In Kentucky, which Trump won in 2020, the Amish population was 4,850 in 2000 and has increased to 15,915 in 2024 in 54 communities. Missouri followed with a population of 5,480 Amish in 2000, rising to 17,635 in 2024.

Shirlene Guerra – Staff Reporter Central Square news service.

This article originally appeared on the Erie Times-News website: If the Amish vote, they could have a significant impact on the outcome of the election.