This paper examines how religious fundamentalist political actors respond to minority status. In particular, it argues that political elites from these parties are more likely to adopt pluralistic and liberal-democratic rhetoric when they are both a numerical minority and do not belong to the country’s dominant religious tradition. This claim is supported by an analysis of social media posts from political elites affiliated with Islamist and Haredi parties. The findings extend Rovny’s (2023) theory of circumstantial liberalism by challenging the assumption that religious actors are too ideologically rigid to respond to minority status, and in doing so, offer a more textured understanding of minority influence in democratic systems under strain.
