Role of White Christian churchgoers in election of Trump to White House

What with Trump threatening to take back the Panama Canal, suggesting Canada should join the U.S. and musing about taking over Greenland, it's hard to have space in your brain for how he got to be president in the first place. But if you want to know what role religion played in that decision, read on.

The more White and Christian an American is—and the more frequently that person goes to church—then the more likely it was they voted for Donald Trump in the recent U.S. presidential election. 

That’s the finding from a Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) from a survey of 4,757 voters that explored the impact of partisanship, race, and religion on voters’ choices. 

According to PRRI, religious divides in presidential vote choice were stark, with white evangelical Protestants strongly backing Trump and Black Protestants, the religiously unaffiliated, and non-Christian voters overwhelmingly supporting Harris. 

White evangelical Protestants continued to be the religious group with the strongest backing of Donald Trump, with 85% reporting that they voted for the President-elect. 

Majorities of both white Catholics (59%) and white mainline/non-evangelical Protestants (57%) also report voting for Trump. 

Strong majorities of Black Protestant voters (83%), unaffiliated voters (72%), those from other non-Christian religions (67%), and Jewish voters (62%) reported voting for Harris. 

Hispanic Catholic voters were more likely to report voting for Harris over Trump (55% v. 43%). In contrast, Hispanic Protestants were more likely to report voting for Trump over Harris (64% v. 36%). 

Among white evangelical Protestants and white Catholics, higher church attendance was correlated with higher support for Trump. Weekly church attenders voted for Trump at significantly higher levels (88%) than those who seldom or never attend church (77%). 

White Catholics who attend church weekly reported voting for Trump at higher levels (64%) than those who attend monthly (58%) or seldom/never (56%). 

The opposite pattern appears among white mainline/non-evangelical Protestants. Those who attend weekly (52%) reported voting for Trump at lower levels than those who attend church less often. 

What about Christian Nationalism? PRRI found that a strong majority of Americans who qualify as Christian nationalism adherents and sympathizers reported voting for Trump (83%). 

Of those who reject Christian nationalism, 64% reported voting for Harris. 

While only 25% of voters indicated they believe God ordained Trump to be the winner of the election, belief in Trump’s divine endorsement is highest among white evangelical Protestants (60%), Hispanic Protestants (45%) and Americans who qualify as Christian nationalism Adherents and Sympathizers. 

Few Hispanic Catholics (25%), white Catholics (21%), or white mainline/non-evangelical Protestant voters (20%) agree that God ordained Trump to win. 

Voters who qualify as Christian nationalism Adherents and Sympathizers (59%) are five times as likely as Christian nationalism Rejecters and Skeptics (11%) to agree that God ordained Trump to win.

You can read the full PRRI report here.