White, regular-churchgoing evangelicals in the US overwhelming supported and continue to support Donald Trump, research has confirmed.
More than three-quarters of all white evangelicals approve of the job performance of President Trump – the figure is 80 per cent for those who attend church regularly – according to a new study by the Pew Research Centre. The figure is double the general public's approval of Trump, which sits at 39 per cent,
While white evangelicals showed strong support for Donald Trump (Trump won 80 per cent of their vote on election day in November), some have suggested the demographic included many who were evangelical 'in name only', choosing the descriptor but not actually being regular, religious churchgoers. On the contrary, the Pew study suggests that those who attend church more regularly (at least once a month) were more likely to vote for Trump in the election, and are more likely to approve of his performance as president.
Sixty-seven per cent of white evangelicals who attend church regularly 'strongly approve' of the president's performance. In contrast, 17 per cent of the same group disapprove, and 13 per cent 'very strongly' disapprove.
Of those who attend church more sporadically, just 54 per cent 'very strongly' approve of the president.
Pew notes that an evangelical approval of a Republican president disproportionate with general public approval is not uncommon. Early in the administration of George W Bush, the president had a public approval of 54 per cent, while 72 per cent of white evangelical protestants expressed approval.
During the election, a significant number of white evangelical leaders had raised their voice in opposition to Trump, saying his life and conduct made him unfit for the presidency. Such voices include the Southern Baptist leader Russell Moore, who earned considerable heat from other conservatives for his outspoken defiance of Trump. Other conservative evangelicals rallied their opposition to him with the hashtag #NeverTrump.
Pew found that only about one in five white evangelicals are irregular churchgoers: 12 per cent said they attended church 'a few times a year', nine per cent said they rarely attended.
The study also found that across religious groups, there was 'no clear connection' between church attendance and opinions of Trump. However, those who didn't identify as white protestants were far less likely to approve of Trump.
Twelve per cent of black Protestants approve of Trump, while 83 per cent disapprove. Eighty-two per cent of Hispanic Catholics disapprove, and 70 per cent of religious 'nones' (those unaffiliated with a denomination) disapprove.
