Evangelical voters keeping an open mind as GOP field expands
- White evangelical or born-again Christians are a key voting bloc for the GOP
- Voters say they're keeping an open mind heading into the primaries
- Trump lost some support from evangelicals between 2016 and 2020
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(NewsNation) — Republican presidential hopefuls are working hard to woo white evangelical Christians, a key voting bloc for the party.
The Family Leader CEO Bob Vander Plaats says evangelical voters have an open mind as they head into the 2024 Republican primary season.
“You can’t win the presidency without the evangelical vote,” Vander Plaats said.
The head of the influential Christian conservative organization told NewsNation those voters are looking for certain values.
“They want somebody, a strong character, somebody that they can trust, somebody that has proven competency, and really put a third C, and there’s kind of the chemistry — are they the right person at the right time who can win,”
Former President Donald Trump was able to win the white evangelical vote handily in the last two elections, but lost about 5% of support from 2016 to 2020.
One of those voters was Sandy Orth of Des Moines, Iowa, a lifelong Republican who voted for President Joe Biden in 2020 because she couldn’t stand how Trump behaved. Orth fears the Republican Party is leaving Christian conservatives behind.
“It doesn’t seem to me that there are many candidates in the Republican Party that are talking about these values,” she said.
Voters like Orth have a track record of showing up to vote. In 2020, evangelicals made up less than 15% of the population, but made up 28% of the electorate. As the road to the 2024 primary begins, Republican leaders including South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and former Vice President Mike Pence are making it a point to try to appeal to these voters.
Pence told NewsNation’s Leland Vittert it’s time to get back to those Christian values.
“Whether they’re Christian, Jewish or Muslim, faith is so important to people across this country,” Pence said.
At an event in Florida on Friday morning, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis made it a point to invoke religious imagery during his remarks.
“Our rights are not the courtesy of the government but a gift of the almighty God,” DeSantis said.
Orth isn’t sure what she’ll do with her vote, but said she’s keeping an open mind.
“My faith will play a big, important part of how I will vote, and so I’m still waiting for a candidate that I can be excited about and get behind,” she said.
