Former President Donald Trump's appeal to evangelical voters — “No one will ever touch the cross of Christ under Trump,” he said at the National Association of Religious Broadcasters convention in February — won converts. are.
The Christian Research Group said this week that the former president “maintains a sizable lead” over Vice President Kamala Harris among influential voting blocs.
Evangelicals who are “more likely to vote” support Trump over Harris, 61% to 31%. Another 5% are undecided, according to LifeWay Research, Brentwood, Tennessee.
Among Christians who do not hold core evangelical views, Ms. Harris' approval rating increased by 47% compared to Mr. Trump's 38%.
However, when demographics are involved, that majority is not absolute.
African American evangelicals support Harris at 76%, compared to 14% of Trump supporters. This is reflected in the fact that 77% of white evangelicals said they would vote for Trump, compared to 28% of white evangelicals who said they would support Harris.
Roughly four in five registered voters surveyed, or 79%, said the most important factor in voting for a candidate was their ability to improve the economy. This is followed by views on immigration, national security, personal characteristics, positions on abortion, and foreign policy.
But the economy and immigration are more likely to influence evangelical votes in November than personal characteristics or stances on abortion.
“If evangelicals can't find a candidate who fits well with their ideas, the largest groups will prioritize candidates they believe are most capable of improving the economy,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research. “I will.”
Differences between evangelicals and other Christians often center around four key issues, LifeWay Research said. The research group said that people who believe that the Bible is the highest authority for their beliefs believe that the Bible is the highest authority for their beliefs. That it is important to encourage non-Christians to trust in Christ for salvation. That Christ's death on the cross is the only way to remove the penalty of sin. And it is defined that only those who trust Jesus alone as their Savior will receive salvation.
Members of many mainstream churches, such as the United Methodist Church, the Episcopal Church, the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the Evangelical Lutheran Church USA, generally avoid some of these theological positions as “restrictive” or “fundamentalist.” and therefore avoids a theological position. Counted as an evangelical voter.
Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is a member of the ELCA congregation, and Mr. Harris belongs to a San Francisco Baptist church.
Mr. Trump was raised as a Presbyterian, but recently said he is a “nondenominational” Christian.
His running mate, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, converted to Catholicism in 2019.
LifeWay Research's online survey of 1,200 Americans was conducted from Aug. 14 to Aug. 30 using a pre-recruited panel nationwide, the organization said. There was a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 points. Opinions of the vice presidential candidate were not sampled in the opinion poll.
Campaigns in both parties have established committees to rally faith communities behind candidates.
The Trump campaign has tapped Ben Carson, a conservative Christian author and housing secretary in the 45th president's administration, to rally religious voters.
For Harris, the person leading the outreach to religious groups is the Rev. Jen Butler, a Liberal Presbyterian minister who led the Obama administration's efforts with religious groups.
