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White Evangelical Christians in the US again gave their support to Donald Trump’s attempt to retain the presidency in this week’s election, although there was a significant drop compared to 2016.
Exit poll polls showed that 75% of white evangelicals voted for Trump this year, compared with 81% four years ago. The group, which represents nearly one in five of the US electorate, carries significant weight and is credited with being a major factor in Trump’s 2016 victory.
The 6% drop in support for Trump between 2016 and 2020 may have been pivotal in key states on the battlefield that are deciding the outcome of the election.
But in Georgia, where votes are still counted in a tight race, exit polls suggested that 85% of white evangelical Christians voted for Trump and 14% voted for Joe Biden.
There was also a significant shift among Catholic voters from Trump to Biden, according to exit polls. Just over half of Catholics (51%) voted for Biden this week, compared to 45% who voted for Democrats in 2016; and 47% voted for Trump this week, compared to 52% in the last election.
Both candidates courted religious groups during the campaign. Biden, a staunch Catholic, made frequent references to his faith and tried to overcome misgivings among Catholic voters about his pro-abortion stance.
Catholics make up a significant proportion of the electorate in the key Rust Belt states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. Overall, white Catholics make up 12% of registered voters, according to the Pew Research Center, with Hispanic Catholics an additional 5%.
Biden also paid special attention to black Protestant voters, who helped him win the Democratic nomination. On Sunday, two days before Election Day, he addressed a “Souls to the Polls” rally aimed at black parishioners in Philadelphia.
In 2016, Trump won among the top three categories of white Christians: White Evangelicals, White Catholics and Top White Protestants, who make up 43% of registered voters.
In this election, his white evangelical base was largely maintained, with the unconditional support of the leaders of many mega-churches. In October, he announced that he no longer identified himself as a Presbyterian, but rather aligned himself, along with many evangelicals, as a non-denominational Christian. He also praised evangelical leaders for keeping churches open during the Covid pandemic.
Scott Waller, a professor of political science at Biola University, said Wednesday that the Trump presidency had pleased white evangelicals, despite controversies. “I have not seen anything the president has done in the last four years that has dissuaded evangelicals that he is not their man: his court appointments, his executive orders related to religious freedom, his justice department positions in key issues, ”he told Christianity Today.
Trump also courted Hispanic Catholics in the key state of Florida, a battlefield that paid off when he won his 29 electoral votes earlier this week.
Nearly two-thirds (64%) of registered voters in the US identify as Christian, although the proportion has dropped from 79% in 2008. The proportion of voters who identify as unaffiliated with a religion has nearly doubled during that period, from 15% to 28%.
According to exit polls, 65% of people who say they have no religion voted for Biden, and 30% back Trump.
More than three-quarters (77%) of Jewish voters supported Biden, and 21% supported Trump, according to an exit poll conducted for J Street, a liberal advocacy group. In 2016, 71% of American Jews voted for Hillary Clinton, and 24% chose Trump.
Muslims are a small proportion of voters nationwide, but they have a significant population in Michigan, which switched to Biden this week.
Vote Common Good, a Christian organization that has campaigned against Trump’s re-election, said exit polls showed that “a critical percentage of white evangelical voters left President Donald Trump this year.”
He added: “On the crucial Michigan battlefield, Trump’s support among this electorate dropped to 70%.”
