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Most conservative Christians voted for Trump in 2020 election
Jennifer Lee 03 December 2020 | 1:42 PM
Trump sought the Christian vote in 2016 and 2020, and throughout his presidency.(Photo: CNN)
Conservative Christians cast their votes for Trump in large numbers last month, according to researchers.
The Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University fielded the voting choices of 6,000 'spiritually active governance engaged conservative Christians' (SAGE Cons) and found that nearly all (99%) had voted in the 2020 presidential election.
By and large, they cast their votes for Donald Trump (97%).
When asked why they had chosen Trump and not Democratic winner Joe Biden, nearly a third (30%) said it was because of his track record as president. This was followed closely by support for his position on social issues (28%), the economy (27%), his conservative political ideology (25%), and his leadership abilities (21%).
Well over half (60%) said abortion was an important factor in deciding who to vote for.
George Barna, who heads up the Cultural Research Center, said Trump would have lost by a bigger margin if conservative Christians had withheld their support.
"Donald Trump would have lost by a landslide had a significant slice of the voting populace—conservative Christians who are active both spiritually and politically—not turned out and voted for him in overwhelming numbers," he said.
He added that the findings suggested conservative Christians saw their values reflected in the Trump administration.
"Nobody is going to confuse Donald Trump with Jesus Christ, but SAGE Cons believe that the Trump portfolio of policy positions much better reflects the biblical worldview that SAGE Cons seek to implement in all walks of life than do those of Mr. Biden," Barna said.
"With the American population moving away from the Bible as a source of truth and moral guidance, SAGE Cons have been pleasantly surprised at how the Trump agenda has coincided with many biblical principles on social and economic matters.
"In 2016, Donald Trump was put over the top by the 91% of votes he received from an unexpected and largely ignored voter segment. This year he was expected to carry that segment in a big way, but nobody would have predicted 99% turnout and 97% support from them—or from any large-scale voter segment.
"It is an astonishing display of consensus and support that, statistically speaking, is not likely to be outdone."