Donald Trump and Christian Nationalism
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Donald Trump and Christian Nationalism
Donald Trump's political relationship with conservative Christianity has become an important subject in research on American religion, elections, nationalism, and political identity. A large body of scholarship, polling, journalism, and commentary examines the extent to which support for Trump overlaps with beliefs commonly described as Christian nationalism—the idea that Christianity should have a privileged or defining relationship with American national identity, government, culture, or public institutions.
Research included in the source material repeatedly finds an association between Christian-nationalist attitudes and support for Trump in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections. At the same time, scholars disagree about how Christian nationalism should be defined and measured and about whether it should be treated as a single ideology. Other explanations for Trump's support among conservative Christians include longstanding Republican identification, opposition to Democratic candidates, abortion, judicial appointments, religious-liberty concerns, immigration, cultural change, perceptions of declining Christian influence, and attitudes concerning race, gender, and national identity.
Trump's relationship with Christian nationalism therefore involves more than voting behavior alone. It includes religious rhetoric, evangelical political organizations, interpretations of American history, disputes over church-state relations, government religious-liberty initiatives, and competing ideas about what role Christianity should occupy in American public life.
Christian Nationalism and Trump's Political Rise
Christian nationalism became increasingly prominent as an analytical framework for understanding Trump's political coalition following the 2016 presidential election. Studies of the election found that Christian-nationalist beliefs were associated with voting for Trump even after researchers considered other religious, political, and demographic variables.
Researchers have also examined the relationship between Christian nationalism and perceptions that traditional American culture or Christianity is threatened by demographic and social change. Some studies connect these perceptions with attitudes toward immigration, race, Muslims, religious minorities, gender roles, and changing cultural norms. In this interpretation, Trump's promises to restore an earlier vision of American society resonated with some voters who believed that Christianity and traditional social arrangements had lost cultural authority.
Other researchers caution against treating Christian nationalism as a simple or uniform explanation. Critics of common survey measures argue that agreement with statements describing America as a Christian nation can represent different theological, cultural, historical, or political ideas. Some scholars consequently distinguish among different varieties of Christian nationalism rather than assuming everyone classified under the term shares the same ideology.
The relationship between Trump and Christian nationalism should therefore be understood as an overlap among several political and religious identities rather than as evidence that all conservative Christians, evangelicals, Republicans, or Trump voters hold Christian-nationalist beliefs.
Evangelical Support for Trump
White evangelical Protestants became one of Trump's most consistently supportive religious constituencies. During the 2016 Republican primary, however, Trump's relationship with evangelical voters was initially more complicated. Early polling and election analysis found that some highly observant evangelicals preferred other Republican candidates, while Trump performed strongly among some voters who identified as evangelical but attended church less frequently.
After Trump secured the Republican nomination, evangelical Republican support consolidated around him. Explanations found throughout the source material include opposition to Hillary Clinton, abortion policy, anticipated Supreme Court appointments, religious-liberty concerns, support for Israel, partisan loyalty, and dissatisfaction with cultural and demographic change.
Trump's personal behavior and level of religious observance created tension for some Christians. Surveys nevertheless found that many white evangelicals distinguished between Trump's personal religiosity and his perceived willingness to defend their political and religious interests.
Some religious supporters also developed theological interpretations of Trump's political role. One prominent analogy compared him with Cyrus, the Persian ruler described in the Hebrew Bible who assisted the Jewish people despite not belonging to their faith. Charismatic and Pentecostal figures sometimes portrayed Trump's political success as providential or divinely directed.
These interpretations were not universally accepted. Other evangelical, mainline Protestant, Catholic, Black Christian, and religious leaders criticized the close identification of Christianity with Trump and argued that political loyalty could compromise Christian witness or religious independence.
Elections and Public Opinion
Christian nationalism has been studied across all three of Trump's presidential campaigns. Research concerning the 2016 election found an independent association between Christian-nationalist beliefs and voting for Trump. Studies of the 2020 election examined whether the same beliefs helped retain previous Trump voters and attract additional support.
Research following the 2024 election again found a substantial relationship. A state-level study compared measures of Christian nationalism with Trump's vote share while considering religious, economic, political, ideological, and demographic characteristics. The researchers reported that states with higher estimated levels of Christian nationalism tended to give Trump a larger share of the vote.
Public Religion Research Institute surveys have similarly reported strong relationships among Christian-nationalist attitudes, Republican identification, white evangelical Protestant identity, and favorable attitudes toward Trump. The strength of Christian-nationalist identification varies substantially by state and religious tradition.
Broader election research shows, however, that Trump's coalition cannot be reduced to Christian nationalism or evangelicalism. His voters include Catholics, non-evangelical Protestants, religiously unaffiliated people, members of minority religious communities, and people from many racial and ethnic backgrounds. Likewise, many Christians reject Christian nationalism or oppose Trump politically.
Polling therefore illustrates both the importance and the limitations of religion as an explanation of Trump's electoral coalition.
Race, National Identity, and Cultural Change
A substantial portion of Christian-nationalism research investigates the relationship among religion, race, national identity, and perceptions of cultural threat.
Some scholars use the term "white Christian nationalism" when discussing a particular historical and political tradition connecting American national identity with white Christian cultural dominance. Studies have explored whether Christian-nationalist beliefs correlate with white racial solidarity, opposition to immigration, fears of demographic change, or restrictive definitions of who counts as a "true American."
Other researchers caution against treating Christian nationalism as inherently identical to white nationalism. Christian-nationalist ideas can appear among Americans of different racial and ethnic backgrounds, and studies have found differences in how white, Black, and Hispanic respondents interpret religious-nationalist language.
These debates have produced an important distinction within the literature: Christian nationalism may interact with racial identity without necessarily having identical meanings or political effects among all racial groups.
Political Rhetoric and Religious Symbolism
Trump frequently addresses conservative Christian organizations and has incorporated religious themes into his political rhetoric. His appearances at events associated with evangelical political activism have emphasized religious liberty, abortion, judicial appointments, Christianity's place in American history, and claims that religious Americans face hostility or discrimination.
Some supporters describe Trump as a defender of Christianity against secularization or progressive cultural change. Certain religious media figures and charismatic leaders have portrayed his political career in explicitly spiritual terms.
Religious symbolism associated with Trump has also generated controversy. The use of Bibles, public prayer, patriotic religious imagery, and statements presenting the United States as a nation with a special relationship to Christianity have been interpreted differently by supporters and critics.
Supporters often view such expressions as legitimate recognition of America's religious heritage and the importance of religious participation in public life. Critics argue that some examples blur the distinction between Christianity and political nationalism or suggest that one religious tradition possesses a privileged status in American government.
January 6 and Political Violence
The January 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol became a major focus of subsequent research on Christian nationalism.
Christian symbols, prayers, crosses, banners, and religious language appeared among some participants in events surrounding the Capitol attack. Researchers and investigative reports have documented religious leaders, organizations, and networks involved in efforts to challenge the 2020 election results.
Studies have subsequently examined relationships among Christian nationalism, perceived political victimhood, racial identity, conspiracy beliefs, rejection of election results, and tolerance of political violence. Some research reports associations between stronger Christian-nationalist attitudes and greater willingness to accept political violence or violations of democratic norms under certain circumstances.
Such findings do not establish that Christian nationalism automatically produces violence or that Christian nationalists generally participate in violent activity. The research instead investigates statistical relationships between particular beliefs and attitudes toward political action.
January 6 also intensified debate within American Christianity. Christian organizations and religious-liberty groups have argued over whether the religious symbolism surrounding the attack represented Christianity, Christian nationalism, extremist politics, or some combination of these phenomena.
Trump's Second Administration and Religious Policy
The relationship between religion and government again became prominent after Trump returned to the presidency in 2025.
In February 2025, Trump established the White House Faith Office. The administration described the office as a mechanism for working with faith-based organizations, houses of worship, and community organizations while addressing religious-liberty concerns and participation in federal programs.
In May 2025, Trump created a Religious Liberty Commission. Its stated responsibilities included examining religious-liberty protections involving schools, workplaces, health care, religious organizations, public displays, parental rights, conscience protections, and government policy.
The administration also established initiatives addressing alleged anti-Christian discrimination within the federal government and issued guidance concerning prayer and religious expression in public schools.
Supporters present these initiatives primarily as protections for constitutional religious freedom and as efforts to ensure that religious Americans and organizations are not excluded from public life.
Critics, including church-state separation organizations, argue that some administration initiatives favor conservative forms of Christianity and reflect elements of Christian-nationalist political thought. The administration disputes characterizations of its religious-liberty agenda as improperly privileging a single faith and describes its policies as protections for religious freedom.
These competing interpretations illustrate the broader difficulty of distinguishing ordinary religious political participation, religious conservatism, religious-liberty advocacy, and Christian nationalism.
Opposition Within Christianity
Christian opposition to Christian nationalism is an important component of the debate.
Religious leaders from evangelical, mainline Protestant, Catholic, Baptist, Black Christian, and other traditions have argued that Christianity should not be equated with any political party, politician, or national identity. Some organizations have specifically mobilized against Christian nationalism while emphasizing religious pluralism and church-state separation.
Other Christians object to the term itself. They argue that it can be defined too broadly and used to describe conventional religious conservatism or ordinary expressions of patriotism by Christians.
This disagreement extends into academic research. Scholars continue to debate which beliefs constitute Christian nationalism, how survey questions should measure it, how closely it overlaps with racial or partisan identities, and whether different forms should be analyzed separately.
Consequently, discussions of Trump and Christian nationalism often involve disagreements not only about politics but also about terminology.
Christian Nationalism, Democracy, and Religious Liberty
One of the central disputes surrounding Christian nationalism concerns the relationship between majority religious identity and a pluralistic constitutional system.
Critics worry that defining the United States primarily as a Christian nation could weaken equal political standing for non-Christians or encourage government preference for a particular religious tradition. Research in the source material examines connections between Christian-nationalist beliefs and attitudes toward voting access, political violence, minority religions, immigration, and democratic norms.
Supporters of stronger Christian influence in public life often reject the claim that their views are hostile to democracy or religious pluralism. They may instead describe their goals as protecting free exercise, acknowledging America's Christian heritage, restoring traditional moral standards, or resisting what they regard as government hostility toward religion.
The disagreement therefore involves fundamental questions about American identity: whether Christianity should occupy a distinctive place in national institutions and historical narratives, how religious freedom should operate in a diverse society, and where the boundary should lie between religious political participation and governmental religious preference.
Conclusion
Donald Trump's relationship with Christian nationalism reflects a broader transformation in the interaction among religion, political identity, nationalism, and partisan conflict in the United States.
Research across the 2016, 2020, and 2024 elections repeatedly identifies associations between Christian-nationalist attitudes and support for Trump. White evangelical Protestants have also remained an important part of Trump's electoral coalition, although evangelicalism and Christian nationalism are neither identical nor sufficient explanations for his broader political support.
Trump-era Christian nationalism encompasses electoral behavior, religious symbolism, perceptions of cultural threat, ideas about national identity, race and demographic change, religious-liberty policy, and debates over presidential power and democratic norms. January 6 brought particular attention to connections among religious rhetoric, election denial, conspiracy movements, and political violence, while Trump's second administration renewed disputes over the appropriate relationship between religion and federal policy.
At the same time, both Christianity and Christian nationalism contain substantial internal diversity. Many Christians oppose Christian nationalism, while scholars disagree about its boundaries and measurement. Some religious conservatives also reject the label even when they favor a larger public role for Christianity.
The relationship between Donald Trump and Christian nationalism is therefore best understood as a contested and evolving political-religious phenomenon rather than as a single organization, denomination, or unified ideology. It has become one of the major frameworks through which scholars, journalists, religious leaders, political activists, and voters debate the place of Christianity in contemporary American democracy.
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Academic Research and Scholarly Analysis
1. On Christian Nationalism | Jesse Smith; Jonathan Tran | Religious Studies Review | September 5, 2026
Reviews Christian-nationalism scholarship and challenges some common definitions, measurements, and interpretations applied to Trump-era politics.
2. Implementing God's Law: Hegseth's Department of War and Christian Reconstruction | Julie Ingersoll | Contending Modernities | August 20, 2026
Examines Christian Reconstructionist ideas and their possible influence on religious and political rhetoric surrounding the second Trump administration.
3. “True Americans” at the Ballot Box: Ascriptive Republicanism, Christian Nationalism, and the Populist Right in 2024 | Alexandra Filindra; Noah Blakemore Briggs; David Ramirez Benitez; Annika Ness | Frontiers in Political Science | August 3, 2026
Compares Christian nationalism with a broader measure of ascriptive national identity in explaining support for Trump and the populist right in the 2024 election.
4. Rebuilding Hegemonic Masculine Patriarchy through the Trumpian Gender Agenda: Implications for Feminism | Ruth Phillips | Social Politics | May 7, 2026
Analyzes Trump administration gender policies through theories of nationalism, masculinity, patriarchy, and feminist politics.
5. An Army for God: Gun Ownership, Christian Nationalism, and Support for Political Violence | Donald Haider-Markel; Brooklyn Walker; Abigail Vegter | Social Science Quarterly | April 2, 2026
Studies whether gun ownership and gun-owner identity amplify the association between Christian-nationalist beliefs and support for political violence.
6. Trump, Christian Nationalism, and Migration | R. Ward Holder | Boston University | March 20, 2026
Explores relationships among Trump-era immigration politics, Christian nationalism, religious identity, and competing theological approaches to migration.
7. Partisan and Racial Sorting of Christian Nationalism, 1996–2022 | Jesse Smith | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion | 2026
Uses longer-term evidence to examine whether contemporary Christian nationalism reflects a new Trump-era phenomenon or earlier partisan and religious sorting.
8. Christian Nationalism, Apocalypticism, Outgroup Hate, and Support for Violent Extremism | Author as listed | Defence and Peace Economics | 2026
Investigates whether apocalyptic expectations and hostility toward perceived outgroups help explain the association between Christian nationalism and support for political violence.
9. Backlash to Christian Nationalism: The Impact of the January 6th Insurrection on Americans’ Religiosity and Political Partisanship | Authors as listed | Politics and Religion | 2026
Investigates whether highly visible Christian imagery at the January 6 attack produced religious or partisan backlash among Americans.
10. Religion Is Sometimes Raced: Christian Nationalism as In-Group Protection | Brooklyn Walker; Paul A. Djupe; Brian R. Calfano; Andrew R. Lewis; Anand E. Sokhey | Perspectives on Politics | October 14, 2025
Challenges interpretations treating Christian nationalism and white Christian nationalism as interchangeable and examines how its political effects vary across racial groups.
11. Christian Nationalism as a Social Practice: Prayer, Violence, and the Politics of Public Ritual | Joel Day | Terrorism and Political Violence | September 11, 2025
Studies prayer at January 6 and other contentious political gatherings as a social practice that can organize and sacralize political mobilization.
12. Anti-Abortion and Pro-Coercion: White Christian Nationalism and Support for Arresting Women Who Have Abortions | Authors as listed | Social Problems | June 28, 2025
Examines relationships among Christian nationalism, white nationalism, abortion attitudes, and support for criminal penalties against women obtaining abortions.
13. Christian Nationalism and the Vote for Donald Trump in the 2024 Presidential Election: A State-Level Analysis | Andrew L. Whitehead; Samuel L. Perry | Nations and Nationalism | June 3, 2025
Compares state-level Christian-nationalism estimates with Trump's 2024 vote share while controlling for political, economic, demographic, and religious characteristics.
14. Christian Nationalism: Since January 6 | Richard T. Hughes; Christina Littlefield | Illinois Scholarship Online | February 25, 2025
Examines Christian-nationalist symbolism during January 6 and its subsequent relationship to Trumpism, election denial, immigration, gender politics, and authoritarian themes.
15. But at What Cost? | Richard T. Hughes; Christina Littlefield | Illinois Scholarship Online | February 25, 2025
Reviews Christian criticism of evangelical political alignment with Trump and debates over the effects of that relationship on Christian public witness.
16. A New Cyrus: Donald Trump Delivers for Christian America | Richard T. Hughes; Christina Littlefield | Illinois Scholarship Online | February 25, 2025
Traces evangelical and charismatic support for Trump, including the influential analogy between Trump and the biblical Persian ruler Cyrus.
17. The Religion of White Identity Politics: Christian Nationalism and White Racial Solidarity | Samuel L. Perry; Joshua B. Grubbs | Social Forces | February 23, 2025
Examines whether Christian nationalism is associated with stronger racial identity and solidarity among white Americans and compares the relationship across racial groups.
18. “We Should All Be Christian Nationalists”: Elite Influence on Identification with Christian Nationalism | Authors as listed | Political Behavior | 2025
Investigates whether political-elite messages can increase willingness to explicitly adopt the Christian-nationalist label following Trump-era political developments.
19. Trump Populism and the Articulation with Christian Nationalism: A Political-Theological Critique Based on Discourse Analysis | Chang-Gi Jeong | Korean Citation Index | 2025
Uses political-theological and discourse analysis to examine the relationship between Trump's populism and Christian-nationalist rhetoric.
20. The Varieties of American Christian Nationalism | Nilay Saiya | Politics and Religion | 2025
Develops a typology of Christian nationalism and discusses charismatic and dominionist factions that have mobilized politically around Trump.
21. Taking It Personally: How Christian Nationalism Helps Fuel the Republican Outrage Machine | Samuel L. Perry | Journal of Illiberalism Studies | 2025
Uses General Social Survey data to study why some conservative Christians interpret criticism of their religious group as criticism of themselves personally.
22. Only One Nation Under God: How White Christian Nationalism and Racial Threat Can Drive Sustained Extremist Belief | Andrew Ifedapo Thompson | Journal of Illiberalism Studies | 2025
Examines racial-status threat, white Christian nationalism, Trump support, political violence, and attitudes toward democratic norms.
23. Making Fusionism Great Again: Authoritarian Means to Christian Nationalist Ends | Amanda Hollis-Brusky | The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science | 2025
Examines how Trumpism affected major institutions in the conservative legal movement and develops the author's concept of a new fusionism joining strong executive power with Christian-nationalist objectives.
24. Holy Disregard: Christian Nationalists More Likely to Accept Democratic Norm Violations from Fellow Citizens | Hannah Criser | Sigma: Journal of Political and International Studies | 2025
Examines associations between Christian-nationalist identification and tolerance for political violence, election rejection, and other democratic-norm violations.
25. Christian Nationalism, Illiberalism, Gender, and the 2024 United States Presidential Election | Andrew L. Whitehead | Journal of Illiberalism Studies | 2025
Examines connections among Christian nationalism, traditional social hierarchies, gender and sexuality issues, and support for Trump in the 2024 election.
26. Christian Nationalism as an Illiberal Interpretation of Religion | Marlene Laruelle; Steven Livingston | Journal of Illiberalism Studies | 2025
Presents Christian nationalism as one framework for interpreting Trump's rise, Republican political transformation, executive authority, and religiously grounded social hierarchy.
27. A Reality Check on the Reach of White Christian Nationalism in Seven Charts | Robert P. Jones | Journal of Illiberalism Studies | 2025
Uses PRRI data to place Christian nationalism's relationship with Trump support and political violence in the context of its overall prevalence among Americans.
28. The Genesis of Christian Nationalism | Phoebe Petrovic | ProPublica / Wisconsin Watch | October 26, 2024
Traces several historical movements that contributed to contemporary Christian nationalism and follows activists mobilizing religious voters for Trump in 2024.
29. The Bible in Christian Nationalist Rhetoric | Samuel L. Adams | Interpretation | October 14, 2024
Studies uses of biblical narratives in Christian-nationalist rhetoric, including portrayals of Trump through the figures of Cyrus and King David.
30. Christian Nationalism and Violence Against Religious Minorities in the United States: A Quantitative Analysis | Nilay Saiya | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion | September 2, 2024
Tests whether political expressions of Christian nationalism are associated with attacks against religious minorities across U.S. states.
31. Was There an Enthusiasm Gap? Examining Support for Donald Trump Among Evangelicals and Nonevangelicals | Alondra S. Pagán Márquez; Paul A. Djupe; Matthew Mettler; Jeffery J. Mondak | Politics and Religion | June 5, 2024
Tests whether evangelical Trump supporters were less enthusiastic than other Trump supporters and reports little evidence of such an enthusiasm gap.
32. The “God Bless the USA Bible”: White Christian Nationalism and the Hermeneutic of Fear | Karl Allen Kuhn | Journal of Lutheran Ethics | 2024
Offers a theological critique of Trump's endorsement of the God Bless the USA Bible and interprets it in relation to white Christian nationalism.
33. Old Wine in New Wineskins: Christian Nationalism, Authoritarianism, and the Problem of Essentialism in Explanations of Religiopolitical Conflict | Jesse Smith | Sociological Forum | 2024
Offers a critical examination of arguments connecting Christian nationalism with authoritarianism and questions essentialist interpretations of contemporary religious-political conflict.
34. How Christian Is Christian Nationalism? | Author as listed | The New Yorker | March 2023
Surveys competing definitions of Christian nationalism and examines how religious identity, nationalism, secularization, race, and Trump-era politics overlap.
35. Christian Nationalism in Support for Donald Trump | Anna Maccaroni | Perspectives | 2023
Reviews literature attempting to explain strong Christian and particularly white evangelical support for Trump through Christian-nationalist identity and perceived cultural threat.
36. Are Christian Nationalists Antisemitic and Why? | Jacob Dennen; coauthors as listed | Social Science Quarterly | 2023
Examines the relationship between Christian-nationalist attitudes, perceived Christian victimhood, Trump-era political rhetoric, and antisemitic beliefs.
37. What Isn't Christian Nationalism? A Call for Conceptual and Empirical Splitting | Jesse Smith; Gary J. Adler Jr. | Socius | September 20, 2022
Critiques the conceptual breadth and standard survey measurement of Christian nationalism and calls for researchers to distinguish several different religiopolitical orientations.
38. How Christian Nationalism Drove Insurrection: A Religious History of Jan. 6 | Kathryn Joyce | History News Network | January 6, 2022
Reviews religious organizations, leaders, and ideas associated with Christian-nationalist participation in events surrounding January 6.
39. Christian Nationalism and Political Violence: Victimhood, Racial Identity, Conspiracy, and Support for the Capitol Attacks | Miles T. Armaly; David T. Buckley; Adam M. Enders | Political Behavior | January 4, 2022
Examines relationships among Christian nationalism, perceived victimhood, white identity, QAnon beliefs, and support for the January 6 Capitol attack.
40. “I Don't Want Everybody to Vote”: Christian Nationalism and Restricting Voter Access in the United States | Samuel L. Perry; coauthors as listed | Sociological Forum | January 3, 2022
Uses pre-2020-election survey data to examine Christian nationalism alongside attitudes about voter fraud, voter suppression, and restrictions on political participation.
41. Christian Nationalism, Perceived Anti-Christian Discrimination, and Prioritising “Religious Freedom” in the 2020 Presidential Election | Samuel L. Perry; Landon Schnabel; Joshua B. Grubbs | Nations and Nationalism | August 31, 2021
Examines how Christian nationalism and perceptions of anti-Christian discrimination related to voters' emphasis on religious freedom during the 2020 election.
42. Decoding “the Base”: White Evangelicals or Christian Nationalists? | Gillian Hart | Studies in Political Economy | June 30, 2021
Considers whether Christian nationalism provides a more useful framework than the broad category of white evangelicalism for understanding Trump's political base.
43. The Devil That You Know: Christian Nationalism and Intent to Change One's Voting Behavior For or Against Trump in 2020 | Samuel L. Perry; Andrew L. Whitehead; Joshua B. Grubbs | Politics and Religion | April 21, 2021
Studies whether Christian-nationalist beliefs encouraged previous non-Trump voters to support Trump or discouraged previous Trump voters from abandoning him in 2020.
44. Unchurched Christian Nationalism and the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election | Samuel Stroope; Paul Froese; Heather Rackin; Jack Delehanty | Sociological Forum | February 21, 2021
Finds the association between Christian nationalism and Trump support was especially pronounced among respondents who were not regular churchgoers.
45. Christian Nationalism Helped Fuel Jan. 6 Insurrection at the Capitol; What's Next? | Matthew D. Taylor | Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies | 2021
Examines Christian networks and religious narratives surrounding January 6 and considers their continuing influence in pro-Trump politics.
46. The Deliverance of the Administrative State: Deep State Conspiracism, Charismatic Demonology, and the Post-Truth Politics of American Christian Nationalism | S. Jonathon O'Donnell | Religion | September 10, 2020
Analyzes spiritual-warfare theology, “deep state” narratives, and Christian nationalism within pro-Trump neo-charismatic evangelical communities.
47. Trump and the Politics of International Religious Freedom | Jeffrey Haynes | Religions | July 27, 2020
Examines the Trump administration's international religious-freedom policies and argues that Judeo-Christian themes played an unusually prominent role.
48. Keep America Christian (and White): Christian Nationalism, Fear of Ethnoracial Outsiders, and Intention to Vote for Donald Trump in the 2020 Presidential Election | Joseph O. Baker; Samuel L. Perry; Andrew L. Whitehead | Sociology of Religion | May 14, 2020
Examines how Christian nationalism, xenophobia, and Islamophobia interacted in predicting intended support for Trump during the 2020 election campaign.
49. A Double Whammy for the History of Evangelical Protestantism | David A. Hollinger | Modern American History | April 29, 2020
Reviews historical interpretations of evangelical Protestantism and considers why so many white evangelical voters supported Trump in 2016.
50. White Evangelical Protestants' Support for Trump in the Viewpoint of Status Politics | Byoung Kwon Sohn | Korean Citation Index | 2020
Interprets white evangelical support for Trump through theories of status anxiety, cultural change, and political mobilization.
51. The Skeptical Faithful: How Trump Gained Momentum among Evangelicals | Dante J. Scala | Presidential Studies Quarterly | 2020
Analyzes how Trump overcame early evangelical skepticism during the 2016 Republican nomination contest and consolidated religious-conservative support.
52. Who Wants to Make America Great Again? Understanding Evangelical Support for Donald Trump | Michele F. Margolis | Politics and Religion | July 11, 2019
Examines explanations for white evangelical support for Trump in 2016 and finds that negative partisanship and long-standing Republican voting patterns help explain the result.
53. The Unexpected Orthodoxy of Donald J. Trump: White Evangelical Support for the 45th President of the United States | Gerardo Martí | Sociology of Religion | 2019
Discusses Trump's support among white evangelical Protestants and considers how his presidency fits within broader patterns of evangelical political behavior.
54. Christianity and Democracy after Trump | Philip S. Gorski | Political Theology | June 5, 2018
Discusses evangelical support for Trump and interprets Trumpism partly through the framework of white Christian nationalism.
55. Make America Christian Again: Christian Nationalism and Voting for Donald Trump in the 2016 Presidential Election | Andrew L. Whitehead; Samuel L. Perry; Joseph O. Baker | Sociology of Religion | January 25, 2018
Examines national survey data and finds Christian nationalism was independently associated with voting for Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election.
Polling, Surveys, Elections, and Public Opinion
56. Pew Poll Finds More Americans Think Religion Is Gaining Influence in U.S. | The Washington Post Staff | The Washington Post | May 14, 2026
Reports changing public perceptions of religion's influence during Trump's second presidency and differences among religious and political groups.
57. Which Republicans Are Most Loyal to Trump? A Comparison of Pro-Trump and Anti-Trump Republicans | Madelyn Snodgrass | Public Religion Research Institute | May 11, 2026
Compares Republicans who view Trump favorably with those who do not, including differences in Christian nationalism, immigration attitudes, and views of democracy.
58. Americans Have Become More Likely to Say Trump Is Not Too or Not at All Religious | Chip Rotolo | Pew Research Center | April 16, 2026
Reports how Americans in different religious and partisan groups assess Trump's personal religiosity and whether they believe he represents their religious interests.
59. How Christian Nationalism Affects Views on Immigration | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | March 30, 2026
Compares white, Black, and Hispanic Christian nationalists' attitudes toward immigration and policies pursued during Trump's second administration.
60. New Poll: Trump Favorability Declines Among Republicans, Some Religious Groups | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | March 2, 2026
Tracks changes in Trump favorability by party, religious affiliation, race, age, and Christian-nationalism classification.
61. New 50-State Survey Finds Majority of Republicans Qualify as Christian Nationalism Supporters | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 17, 2026
Summarizes state-level survey findings connecting Christian-nationalist attitudes with partisanship, religious affiliation, media use, and favorable views of Trump.
62. Mapping Christian Nationalism Across the 50 States: Insights from PRRI's 2025 American Values Atlas | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 17, 2026
Updates state-level Christian-nationalism measurements and examines associations with Trump favorability, party politics, authoritarian attitudes, immigration, and political violence.
63. Fact Sheet: A Closer Look at Christian Nationalism in Nine States | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 17, 2026
Provides detailed state examples showing how Christian-nationalist identification varies alongside political and religious characteristics.
64. Trump Favorability Remains Steady Through First Year | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 12, 2026
Examines Trump's favorability during the first year of his second term by religion, party affiliation, Christian-nationalism classification, and religious practice.
65. Trump Approval Is Down Among Most Religious Groups Compared With a Year Ago | Pew Research Center Staff | Pew Research Center | February 9, 2026
Compares Trump's approval across evangelical Protestants, Catholics, mainline Protestants, Black Protestants, and religiously unaffiliated Americans.
66. Competing Visions of America at 250: Politics, Religion, and American Identity | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | 2026
Surveys Americans about Christian nationalism, national identity, Trump, immigration, presidential power, religion, and competing understandings of the United States.
67. How Christian Nationalist Rhetoric Can Influence Elections Across Race | Allyson Shortle; Michael R. Fisher Jr. | Public Religion Research Institute | August 12, 2025
Reports survey-experiment findings on how white, Black, and Hispanic respondents react to hypothetical candidates using Christian-nationalist rhetoric.
68. How Voting Patterns Changed in the 2024 Election: A Detailed Analysis | Pew Research Center Staff | Pew Research Center | June 26, 2025
Uses validated-voter data to compare the 2024 electorate with the 2016 and 2020 elections across religion, race, education, gender, and other characteristics.
69. Detailed Demographic Profiles of Trump and Harris Voters in 2024 | Hannah Hartig; Scott Keeter; Andrew Daniller; Ted Van Green | Pew Research Center | June 26, 2025
Provides detailed demographic and religious profiles of the coalitions that voted for Donald Trump and Kamala Harris in 2024.
70. Christian Nationalism Across All 50 States: Insights from PRRI's 2024 American Values Atlas | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 4, 2025
Uses more than 22,000 interviews to examine geographic variation in Christian nationalism and its state-level correlation with Trump's 2024 vote.
71. Across All 50 States, New Survey Finds Strong Correlation Between Support for Christian Nationalism and Voting for Trump in 2024 Election | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 4, 2025
Summarizes survey evidence comparing Christian-nationalist attitudes, state-level voting patterns, religious affiliation, and the 2024 presidential vote.
72. Analyzing the 2024 Presidential Vote: PRRI's Post-Election Survey | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | December 13, 2024
Studies religion, race, Christian nationalism, authoritarianism, and other factors associated with presidential vote choice in 2024.
73. Resistance to Christian Nationalism in All 50 States | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | October 30, 2024
Examines Americans who reject or remain skeptical of Christian-nationalist beliefs, including their religious and political characteristics and views of Trump.
74. Religious Values and the 2024 Election | Pew Research Center Staff | Pew Research Center | June 6, 2024
Compares Trump and Biden supporters' opinions about religion in government, biblical influence on public policy, and church-state relations.
75. How Americans See the Presidential Candidates' Religious Engagement | Pew Research Center Staff | Pew Research Center | March 15, 2024
Surveys perceptions of Trump's, Biden's, and other political figures' religiosity and their willingness to defend religious Americans.
76. The Overlap of Trumpism and Christian Nationalism | Philip Bump | The Washington Post | February 29, 2024
Analyzes PRRI polling showing substantial overlap between Christian-nationalist beliefs and support for Trump.
77. Support for Christian Nationalism in All 50 States | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 28, 2024
Maps Christian nationalism across the states and compares the results with Trump support, political affiliation, religion, race, education, and other characteristics.
78. First of Its Kind Survey Maps Support for Christian Nationalism Across All 50 States | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 27, 2024
Introduces PRRI's state-level Christian-nationalism estimates and compares them with evangelical identity, Republican affiliation, and Trump support.
79. A Christian Nation? Understanding the Threat of Christian Nationalism to American Democracy and Culture | PRRI Staff | Public Religion Research Institute | February 8, 2023
Presents national survey data on Christian-nationalist beliefs and their relationships with party identification, Trump favorability, religion, race, and political attitudes.
80. During Trump Presidency, More White Americans Adopted Than Shed Evangelical Label | Pew Research Center | September 15, 2021
Uses longitudinal survey data to examine changes in evangelical identification and their relationship with favorable views of Trump.
81. More Americans Say Trump Administration Has Helped Evangelicals Than Other Groups | Justin Nortey | Pew Research Center | May 11, 2020
Reports public perceptions of the Trump administration's effects on evangelical Christians, Muslims, Jews, and other religious communities.
82. Most White Evangelicals Satisfied with Trump's Initial Response to the COVID-19 Outbreak | Gregory A. Smith | Pew Research Center | March 19, 2020
Shows that white evangelicals initially expressed particularly high approval of Trump's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
83. White Evangelicals See Trump as Fighting for Their Beliefs, Though Many Have Mixed Feelings About His Personal Conduct | Pew Research Center | March 12, 2020
Finds that many white evangelicals viewed Trump as defending their political and religious interests despite reservations about his personal conduct.
84. Views About Religion in American Society | Pew Research Center | March 12, 2020
Examines perceptions that Christianity is losing cultural influence, an issue frequently connected to explanations of evangelical and Christian-nationalist politics.
85. How Different Religious Groups View Religion's Role in the Presidency, Trump's Traits | Pew Research Center | March 12, 2020
Compares religious groups' assessments of Trump's religiosity, morality, honesty, and willingness to defend their beliefs.
86. Evangelical Approval of Trump Remains High, but Other Religious Groups Are Less Supportive | Pew Research Center Staff | Pew Research Center | March 18, 2019
Compares Trump's approval ratings among white evangelicals and other major religious groups midway through his first presidency.
87. Among White Evangelicals, Regular Churchgoers Are the Most Supportive of Trump | Gregory A. Smith | Pew Research Center | April 26, 2017
Finds particularly high early-presidency approval of Trump among white evangelical Protestants who attended religious services regularly.
88. How the Faithful Voted: A Preliminary 2016 Analysis | Gregory A. Smith; Jessica Martínez | Pew Research Center | November 9, 2016
Provides an early analysis of presidential voting among evangelical Protestants, Catholics, mainline Protestants, Black Protestants, and religiously unaffiliated voters.
89. Many Evangelicals Favor Trump Because He Is Not Clinton | Gregory A. Smith | Pew Research Center | September 23, 2016
Reports that opposition to Hillary Clinton was an important motivation among many white evangelical voters supporting Trump in 2016.
90. Churchgoing Republicans, Once Skeptical of Trump, Now Support Him | Gregory A. Smith | Pew Research Center | July 21, 2016
Documents the consolidation of Republican evangelical support behind Trump after he secured the party's 2016 presidential nomination.
91. Religion in Public Life | Pew Research Center Staff | Pew Research Center | July 13, 2016
Examines attitudes toward religion in politics during the 2016 campaign, including perceptions of Trump and the role of religious leaders.
92. Religion and the 2016 U.S. Presidential Campaign | Pew Research Center | July 13, 2016
Compares Trump and Clinton support across white evangelicals, mainline Protestants, Catholics, Black Protestants, and religiously unaffiliated voters.
93. Evangelicals Rally to Trump, Religious “Nones” Back Clinton | Pew Research Center | July 13, 2016
Documents strong support for Trump among white evangelical Protestant voters during the 2016 general-election campaign.
94. Trump Has Benefited from Evangelicals' Support, but He's Not the First Choice of the Most Committed | Jessica Martínez; Gregory A. Smith | Pew Research Center | April 4, 2016
Shows that during the Republican primary Trump initially performed better among less-frequent church attenders than among highly observant evangelical Republicans.
95. How Religion Is Shaping the 2016 Presidential Race | Pew Research Center | January 27, 2016
Provides early polling on how evangelical and other religious voters evaluated Trump and competing presidential candidates.
Journalism, Analysis, and Religious Politics
96. Christian Nationalists' Professed Support for Religious Pluralism Is Often Drowned Out by Perceptions That Christians Are Under Threat | Authors as listed | Religion News Service | August 21, 2026
Reports research finding that perceived threats to Christians can reduce political tolerance even among Christian nationalists who nominally support religious pluralism.
97. Trump's “Christian Nationalism” Is Neither of Those Things | Matt Ford | The New Republic | June 3, 2026
Opinion piece disputes whether “Christian nationalism” accurately describes the Trump administration and criticizes both its religious and nationalist claims.
98. Where Christian Nationalism Is Most Dominant in the U.S. | Axios Staff | Axios | February 18, 2026
Summarizes PRRI's 50-state data on Christian nationalism and its correlations with Republican identification and favorable views of Trump.
99. Christian Nationalists Are All in on Trump—and Vice Versa | Grace Segers | The New Republic | February 17, 2026
Discusses new PRRI survey findings showing strong correlations among Christian-nationalist beliefs, Republican identification, and favorable views of Trump.
100. The Christian Nationalist Worldview Behind America's New Security Posture | Jennifer Butler | Religion News Service | December 18, 2025
Opinion analysis interprets elements of the second Trump administration's national-security strategy through a Christian-nationalist ideological framework.
101. On the Right, Judeo-Christian Values Are Out and Christian Nationalism Is In | Religion News Service Staff | Religion News Service | November 18, 2025
Examines the shift among some right-wing religious activists from “Judeo-Christian” rhetoric toward more explicitly Christian-nationalist political language.
102. Trump Has Put Christian Nationalists in Key Roles | Adam Gabbatt | The Guardian | April 16, 2025
Examines Christian activists and religious leaders appointed to or influencing faith-related initiatives during Trump's second administration.
103. What White Christians Have Wrought | Robert P. Jones | TIME | November 11, 2024
Opinion essay examines white evangelical, Catholic, and mainline Protestant support for Trump in 2024 and relates it to Christian-nationalist politics.
104. What Another Trump Presidency Means to Evangelicals Around the World | Christianity Today Editors | Christianity Today | November 7, 2024
Collects responses from evangelical leaders outside the United States about Trump's reelection and its implications for religion, diplomacy, and American influence.
105. U.S. Christians Pushing Back on Christian Nationalism | Niala Boodhoo | Axios | October 7, 2024
Reports on Christians from several traditions organizing against Christian nationalism and challenging its association with Trump-era politics.
106. Trump's Christian Nationalist Vision for America | Robert P. Jones | TIME | September 10, 2024
Opinion essay interprets Trump's rhetoric to conservative Christian audiences through the framework of white Christian nationalism and draws on PRRI polling.
107. A New Movement Aims to Remake Evangelicals' Relationship to Politics | The Washington Post Staff | The Washington Post | August 3, 2024
Profiles evangelical Christians attempting to create alternatives to the close identification between evangelicalism, Trump, and contemporary conservative politics.
108. Axios Explains: Christian Nationalism on the March | Axios Staff | Axios | June 24, 2024
Provides an overview of Christian nationalism, its historical development, contemporary political organizations, and connections with Trump and Republican politics.
109. Trump Has Changed What It Means to Be Evangelical | Shadi Hamid | The Washington Post | June 17, 2024
Opinion analysis discusses evidence that evangelical identity has become increasingly intertwined with political identity and support for Trump.
110. On Trump and Biden, U.S. Voters' Views Differ Sharply by Religion | Pew Research Center | April 30, 2024
Compares 2024 presidential preferences among evangelical Protestants, Catholics, mainline Protestants, Black Protestants, Jews, atheists, and other groups.
111. The Threat of Christian Nationalism | David Martin Davies | Texas Public Radio | April 22, 2024
Radio discussion examines Trump, conservative Christianity, Christian nationalism, church-state relations, and the movement's role in contemporary Republican politics.
112. Christian Nationalists Embrace Trump as Their Savior — Will They Be His? | Adam Gabbatt | The Guardian | April 7, 2024
Reports on Christian-nationalist themes in Trump's 2024 campaigning and the evolving relationship between Trump and conservative Christian activists.
113. The Strange World of Catholic “Integralism” — and Christian Nationalism | Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | April 3, 2024
Explores Catholic integralism, Christian nationalism, conservative political networks, and their connections to political developments during and after Trump's presidency.
114. “God Gave Us Trump”: Christian Media Evangelicals Preach a Messianic Message | Reuters Staff | Reuters | March 22, 2024
Examines Christian media figures who portray Trump as divinely chosen or compare his political role with biblical figures such as Cyrus.
115. 5 Facts About Religion and Americans' Views of Donald Trump | Pew Research Center | March 15, 2024
Summarizes contemporary polling on religious affiliation, church attendance, evangelical identity, and favorable views of Trump.
116. Trump, the “Religious Right” and White Christian Nationalism | Editors/Authors as listed | America Magazine | January 5, 2024
Reviews the historical religious right, white evangelical support for Trump, election denial, and contemporary debates over Christian nationalism.
117. Why Are So Many Evangelical Christians in Thrall to Trump? | Financial Times Staff | Financial Times | 2024
Reviews Tim Alberta's work on the transformation of evangelical political identity and the growth of Christian-nationalist themes during the Trump era.
118. Jesus Is Their Savior, Trump Is Their Candidate | Peter Smith | Associated Press | 2024
Reports from Trump's evangelical base and explores religious imagery, abortion, LGBTQ issues, patriotism, and beliefs about America as a Christian nation.
119. What Is Christian Nationalism, Anyway? | Bob Smietana | Religion News Service | May 17, 2023
Surveys competing definitions of Christian nationalism while examining pro-Trump charismatic activists and debates over American Christian identity.
120. How the Battle Over Christian Nationalism Often Starts with Homeschooling | Religion News Service Staff | Religion News Service | December 23, 2022
Examines Christian-nationalist themes in homeschooling curricula, including educational projects associated with pro-Trump conservative activists.
121. Ye's Trump Dinner Is a High Point for Catholic Nationalists' Influence Campaign | Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | December 1, 2022
Examines networks of Catholic-oriented nationalist activists surrounding Nick Fuentes, Ye, and their controversial 2022 dinner with Trump.
122. How the Capitol Attacks Helped Spread Christian Nationalism in the Extreme Right | Religion News Service Staff | Religion News Service | January 26, 2022
Examines how Christian-nationalist language and symbolism developed within far-right movements after the January 6 attack.
123. Post-Trump, Christian Nationalists Preach a Theology of Vaccine Resistance | Jack Jenkins | Religion News Service | September 14, 2021
Reports on Christian-nationalist rallies combining pro-Trump politics, opposition to COVID-19 vaccination policies, conspiracy narratives, and religious revivalism.
124. America's Revival Features Calls to Prayer, Jesus-Trumps-COVID Claims and Mike Lindell Conspiracy Theories | Religion News Service Staff | Religion News Service | August 7, 2021
Reports on a gathering blending evangelical worship, pro-Trump politics, Christian-nationalist messaging, gun culture, and COVID-related conspiracy theories.
125. Why White Evangelicals Stuck with Trump | Myriam Renaud | University of Chicago Divinity School | February 11, 2021
Reviews polling and research seeking to explain why white evangelical support for Trump remained high between the 2016 and 2020 elections.
126. Christian Nationalists and QAnon Followers Tend to Be Anti-Semitic. That Was Seen in the Capitol Attack | Paul A. Djupe; Jacob Dennen | The Washington Post | January 26, 2021
Presents survey research connecting QAnon identification, Christian nationalism, Trump support, and antisemitic attitudes around the January 6 attack.
127. With Bibles and Flash Grenades, Trump Walks the Christian Nationalist Walk | Andrew L. Whitehead | Religion News Service | June 2, 2020
Commentary interprets Trump's June 2020 Bible photo opportunity at St. John's Church through the author's scholarly framework of Christian nationalism.
128. Christian Nationalism and Donald Trump | Frederick Clarkson | Political Research Associates | April 6, 2018
Discusses early social-science research linking Christian-nationalist beliefs to evangelical and other religious support for Trump.
129. Evangelicals and Donald Trump | Kim Lawton | PBS Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly | June 17, 2016
Reports on divisions among evangelicals during Trump's first presidential campaign and the issues attracting conservative Christian support.
130. Actually, Most Evangelicals Don't Vote Trump | Darren Patrick Guerra | Christianity Today | March 18, 2016
Challenges early media narratives about Trump's evangelical support by examining voting patterns during the 2016 Republican primaries.
Trump, Evangelicals, and Christian-Nationalist Politics
131. Pete Hegseth to Headline D.C. Faith Rally With Far-Right and Christian Nationalist Speakers | Jason Wilson | The Guardian | May 13, 2026
Reports on speakers and organizations scheduled for a Washington religious-political gathering backed by figures in the Trump administration.
132. Christians Condemn Trump Post Depicting Him as Jesus-Like Figure | Axios Staff | Axios | April 13, 2026
Reports Christian reactions to religious imagery shared by Trump and broader debate about the use of Christian symbolism in presidential politics.
133. “Christ Is King” Becomes Loaded Phrase in U.S. Political Debates, Especially on the Right | Associated Press | Los Angeles Times | March 5, 2026
Examines disputes over a traditional Christian phrase increasingly used in online political movements associated with nationalism and the political right.
134. Trump's Taskforce Order Is Latest in Efforts to Boost Christian Nationalism | Joseph Gedeon | The Guardian | February 7, 2025
Interprets Trump's anti-Christian-bias initiative in the context of his administration's relationship with conservative Christian organizations.
135. Huckabee Pick as Israel Ambassador Reflects Long Evangelical Alliance | Michelle Boorstein | The Washington Post | December 2, 2024
Examines Mike Huckabee's selection as ambassador to Israel in the context of Trump's relationship with evangelical Christians and Christian Zionism.
136. Trump's Picks Have Strong Ties to Project 2025 | Los Angeles Times Staff | Los Angeles Times | November 30, 2024
Examines connections between incoming Trump administration officials and Project 2025, including policy proposals important to religious conservatives.
137. U.S. Christian Right Celebrates After Prophecy of Trump Win Comes to Pass | Author as listed | The Guardian | November 7, 2024
Examines charismatic Christian leaders who described Trump's 2024 victory in prophetic or providential terms.
138. Trump Leans Into Religious Extremism to Energize Rightwing Evangelicals | Adam Gabbatt | The Guardian | August 5, 2024
Reports on religious rhetoric and speakers appearing alongside Trump's 2024 campaign and the response from scholars and Christian critics.
139. Pro-Trump Christian Extremists Use Scripture to Justify Violent Goals | Hannah Allam | The Washington Post | July 13, 2024
Investigates militant religious rhetoric among some pro-Trump activists while distinguishing those groups from broader Christian political conservatism.
140. Trump Promotes “God Bless the USA Bible,” Selling for $59.99 | Faith E. Pinho | Los Angeles Times | March 26, 2024
Reports on Trump's promotion of a Bible packaged with several American civic documents and reactions to the product from religious observers.
141. “Ordained by God”: Trump's Legal Problems Galvanize Iowa Evangelicals | The Washington Post Staff | The Washington Post | January 14, 2024
Reports from Iowa evangelical voters who interpreted Trump's political and legal struggles through religious and providential frameworks.
142. “Tectonic Shift in Power”: How MAGA Pastors Boost Trump's Campaign | Axios Staff | Axios | January 12, 2024
Reports on evangelical and charismatic pastors mobilizing supporters for Trump's 2024 campaign through churches, rallies, and social media.
143. At Far-Right Roadshow, Trump Is God's “Anointed One,” QAnon Is King | Sarah D. Wire | Los Angeles Times | October 12, 2023
Reports from a ReAwaken America event combining pro-Trump activism, charismatic Christianity, conspiracy theories, and Christian-nationalist themes.
144. Pro-Trump Pastors Rebuked for “Overt Embrace of White Christian Nationalism” | Peter Stone | The Guardian | May 1, 2023
Reports on Pastors for Trump and criticism from other Christian leaders who objected to the organization's political and theological message.
145. Faith Leaders Ask Why Jan. 6 Report Left Out Christian Nationalism | Jack Jenkins | The Washington Post / Religion News Service | December 29, 2022
Reports criticism that the congressional January 6 report gave limited attention to Christian-nationalist organizations and religious symbolism.
146. Is America a Christian Nation? Pastors at Odds About Fusion of Faith and Politics | Taylor Mooney | CBS News | March 4, 2021
Presents competing Christian perspectives on nationalism, American identity, Trump-era politics, and church-state relations.
147. White Evangelicals Are Hailing the Trump Era. Will Their Alliance With Him Stunt Their Influence Going Forward? | Eugene Scott | The Washington Post | December 18, 2020
Reviews evangelical assessments of Trump's first term and debate over the political and religious consequences of their alliance.
148. White Evangelical Support for Trump Goes Beyond His Policies, Supporters and Historians Say | Shayna Freisleben | CBS News | November 2, 2020
Examines historical, racial, cultural, and partisan factors offered to explain white evangelical support for Trump.
149. Seeking Power in Jesus' Name: Trump Sparks a Rise of Patriot Churches | Sarah Pulliam Bailey | The Washington Post | October 26, 2020
Reports on congregations combining evangelical Christianity, intense patriotism, and support for Trump during the 2020 election.
150. Faith Leaders Back Biden in Sign That Evangelical Support for Trump Is Waning | Harriet Sherwood | The Guardian | October 9, 2020
Reports on evangelical and other Christian leaders who publicly opposed Trump during the 2020 campaign.
151. Trump Mocks the Faith of Others. His Own Religious Practices Remain Opaque | Sarah Pulliam Bailey | The Washington Post | February 14, 2020
Examines Trump's personal religious practices and public religious rhetoric while reporting differing assessments from supporters and critics.
152. “Unparalleled Privilege”: Why White Evangelicals See Trump as Their Savior | Adam Gabbatt | The Guardian | January 11, 2020
Explores the Cyrus analogy and other theological explanations offered by evangelical Trump supporters.
153. Faith and Freedoms: Why Evangelicals Profess Unwavering Love for Trump | Tom McCarthy | The Guardian | July 7, 2019
Examines abortion, judicial appointments, religious-liberty policy, Israel, and partisan identity as explanations for evangelical support.
154. Why Are Evangelical Americans So Loyal to Trump? Because They're Heavily Republican | Philip Bump | The Washington Post | April 10, 2019
Argues that partisan identification is a major explanation for white evangelical loyalty to Trump.
155. Why Do White Evangelicals Still Staunchly Support Donald Trump? | John Fea | The Washington Post | April 5, 2019
Historian John Fea argues that fear, political power, and nostalgia for a Christian America help explain persistent evangelical support for Trump.
156. Amid Wavering Support From His Base, Trump Doubles Down on Evangelicals | JM Rieger | The Washington Post | February 8, 2019
Reviews Trump's public appeals to evangelical voters and conservative Christian policy priorities during his first administration.
157. “Brought to Jesus”: The Evangelical Grip on the Trump Administration | Julian Borger | The Guardian | January 11, 2019
Reports on evangelical advisers, cabinet officials, and religious organizations with access to Trump's first administration.
158. Explained: Evangelicals, the Religious Right and Trump | Ryan Kohls | Al Jazeera | November 6, 2018
Provides background on the American religious right and the political relationship between conservative evangelicals and Trump.
159. Regular Churchgoing Doesn't Make Trump Voters More Moderate. It Makes Them More Enthusiastic for Trump | Paul A. Djupe; Ryan P. Burge | The Washington Post | October 9, 2018
Uses survey evidence to challenge claims that Trump's strongest religious supporters were primarily nominal or infrequent churchgoers.
160. Trump Gets Religion, Evangelicals Say, and Now Wants to Broaden His Reach | Frances Stead Sellers | The Washington Post | November 12, 2017
Reports on evangelical leaders' assessments of Trump's first year and White House efforts to strengthen relationships with religious conservatives.
161. Donald Trump Is No Saint, but I Know Why Evangelicals Love Him | Josiah Hesse | The Guardian | September 5, 2017
Commentary explores cultural and political reasons some evangelical Christians supported Trump despite concerns over his personal behavior.
162. Trump's Religious Liberty Order Doesn't Answer Most Evangelicals' Prayers | Kate Shellnutt | Christianity Today | May 4, 2017
Reports evangelical reactions to Trump's first major religious-liberty executive order, including disappointment from activists seeking broader changes.
163. How Fights Over Trump Have Led Evangelicals to Leave Their Churches | Paul A. Djupe; Jacob R. Neiheisel; Anand Edward Sokhey | The Washington Post | April 11, 2017
Discusses research on Americans changing congregations because of political disagreements, including conflicts surrounding Trump.
164. “Still the Best Candidate”: Some Evangelicals Still Back Trump Despite Lewd Video | Sarah Pulliam Bailey | The Washington Post | October 8, 2016
Documents reactions among evangelical leaders and voters after release of the Access Hollywood recording.
165. Who's Who of Trump's “Tremendous” Faith Advisers | Kate Shellnutt; Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra | Christianity Today | June 22, 2016
Profiles members of Trump's newly announced evangelical advisory board during the 2016 presidential campaign.
166. Floyd, Jeffress, Others New Trump Advisers | Diana Chandler | Baptist Press | June 22, 2016
Reports on Southern Baptist and other evangelical leaders named to Trump's 2016 evangelical advisory board.
167. Donald Trump Swears to Christian Leaders, “I'm So on Your Side” | ABC News Staff | ABC News | June 21, 2016
Reports on Trump's 2016 meeting with evangelical leaders and his promises concerning judges, religious liberty, political speech, and other conservative Christian priorities.
168. Where Is Trump's Evangelical Base? Not in Church | Geoffrey C. Layman | The Washington Post | March 29, 2016
Uses primary-election data to argue that Trump's earliest evangelical strength was disproportionately concentrated among less-frequent church attenders.
169. Trump Makes Inroads With Evangelicals, Undermining Cruz | Jenna Johnson; Robert Costa | The Washington Post | January 26, 2016
Reports on Trump's efforts to compete with Ted Cruz for evangelical Republican voters during the 2016 primaries.
Government, Church-State, Networks, and Institutional Responses
170. No Surprises: Religious Liberty Commission Draft Report Advances Christian Nationalism | Alessandro Terenzoni | Americans United for Separation of Church and State | July 2, 2026
Americans United critiques the Trump administration's Religious Liberty Commission draft report and argues that it privileges one interpretation of Christianity.
171. Rededicate 250: How Christianity Took Center Stage in D.C. | Author as listed | Deseret News | May 19, 2026
Reports on the Rededicate 250 gathering and differing perspectives on the relationship between American patriotism, Christianity, and the Trump administration.
172. Trump-Backed Prayer Festival on National Mall Draws Thousands | Michelle Boorstein; Laura Meckler; Mariana Alfaro | The Washington Post | May 17, 2026
Covers Rededicate 250, where government officials and evangelical leaders blended Christian worship with claims about America's national religious identity.
173. Trump Administration Will Join a Prayer Gathering Criticized for Promoting Christian Nationalism | Peter Smith | Associated Press | May 14, 2026
Reports on the Trump administration's participation in the Rededicate 250 National Mall prayer gathering and competing views about its church-state implications.
174. AU: Trump Administration's “Anti-Christian Bias” Report Advances Christian Nationalism | Americans United | April 30, 2026
Advocacy response argues that the administration's anti-Christian-bias initiative favors conservative Christian claims rather than applying religious-freedom protections neutrally.
175. The Rise of Christian Nationalism | CNN Staff | CNN | March 20, 2026
Discusses the growth and political influence of Christian nationalism during Trump's second administration with analysts and religious experts.
176. National Prayer Breakfast or Christian Nationalism Breakfast? | Robert P. Sellers | Baptist News Global | March 2, 2026
Commentary from a Baptist perspective criticizes the blending of partisan politics, presidential power, and Christianity at national religious events.
177. Christian Nationalism and Trump's Second Presidency | CNN Staff | CNN | February 17, 2026
Reviews polling and political developments involving Christian nationalism, Trump supporters, and religious leaders connected to the administration.
178. Trump Uses National Prayer Breakfast to Push Christian Nationalist Agenda | Freedom From Religion Foundation | February 5, 2026
FFRF criticizes Trump's National Prayer Breakfast remarks and argues that presidential participation in sectarian religious events weakens church-state separation.
179. A Religion Too Wild to Nationalize | Benjamin J. Dueholm | The Christian Century | 2026
Offers a Christian theological argument against identifying Christianity with a single nation, political movement, or governmental program.
180. Founding Myths and Future Nightmares: How Christian Nationalism Took Root in America | Imani K. Bryant | Americans United for Separation of Church and State | September 16, 2025
Advocacy analysis traces Christian-nationalist historical narratives and discusses their contemporary relationship with Trump and presidential power.
181. “America Doesn't Need More Christian Nationalism”: During Trump 2.0, AU Is Committed to Defending Religious Freedom | Liz Hayes | Americans United for Separation of Church and State | February 3, 2025
Americans United argues that Trump's second administration is advancing Christian-nationalist policies and describes the organization's planned church-state response.
182. White Christian Clergy Running for Congress as Democrats Face Skeptics in Their Own Party | Author as listed | The Christian Century | 2025
Examines clergy entering electoral politics partly in response to the prominence of conservative Christianity and Christian-nationalist politics during the Trump era.
183. Evangelicals — From Faith to Power: God Above All? | PBS Staff | PBS | December 4, 2024
Documentary segment examines evangelical political power, Trump support, and debates within American Christianity about nationalism and democracy.
184. CNN Report: Christian Nationalism and the Trump Movement | CNN Staff | CNN | April 11, 2024
Examines Christian-nationalist activists supporting Trump and includes interviews with religious scholars and movement participants.
185. Hit Trump on Theocracy, Not Hypocrisy | Jeet Heer | The Nation | February 23, 2024
Opinion essay argues that Trump's institutional alliance with Christian-nationalist activists deserves more attention than debates about his personal religiosity.
186. But … Is It Christian Nationalism? | Amanda Tyler; BJC Staff | Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty | 2024
Discusses how to distinguish ordinary public expressions of Christianity from Christian nationalism, using Trump-related symbols and rhetoric among its examples.
187. Takeaways From the AP/FRONTLINE Michael Flynn Investigation | Michelle R. Smith; Associated Press | PBS FRONTLINE | September 7, 2022
Investigates Michael Flynn's post-Trump-administration political network, election denial, Christian-nationalist rhetoric, and efforts to influence local politics.
188. Christian Nationalism and the January 6, 2021, Insurrection | Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty; Freedom From Religion Foundation | February 2022
Multi-author investigative report documents Christian symbols, organizations, leaders, election-fraud narratives, and pro-Trump religious activism surrounding January 6.
Trump Administration and Primary Government Sources
189. Remarks at the Faith and Freedom Coalition 2026 Policy Conference | Donald J. Trump | American Presidency Project | June 26, 2026
Provides a primary-source transcript of Trump's address to conservative Christian activists during his second administration, useful for comparing his religious-political rhetoric across presidencies.
190. U.S. Department of Education Issues Guidance on Prayer and Religious Expression in Public Schools | U.S. Department of Education | Department of Education | February 5, 2026
Explains Trump administration guidance concerning constitutionally protected student prayer and religious expression in public elementary and secondary schools.
191. President Donald Trump Names Advisory Board Members to the Religious Liberty Commission | The White House | The White House | May 16, 2025
Announces religious leaders, legal specialists, and other advisers appointed to boards supporting the Religious Liberty Commission.
192. President Trump Announces Religious Liberty Commission Members | The White House | The White House | May 1, 2025
Lists the members chosen for Trump's Religious Liberty Commission and describes their professional and religious backgrounds.
193. Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Establishes the Religious Liberty Commission | The White House | The White House | May 1, 2025
Presents the administration's explanation of the commission, its membership, priorities, and stated religious-liberty objectives.
194. Establishment of the Religious Liberty Commission | Donald J. Trump | The White House | May 1, 2025
Executive Order 14291 creates the commission and directs it to study religious-liberty issues including schools, workplaces, health care, public religious displays, and government policy.
195. Attorney General Pamela Bondi Hosts First Task Force Meeting to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias in the Federal Government | U.S. Department of Justice | Department of Justice | April 22, 2025
Presents the Trump administration's stated rationale for its interagency task force investigating allegations of anti-Christian discrimination by the federal government.
196. Establishment of the White House Faith Office | Donald J. Trump | The White House | February 7, 2025
Executive order establishes the White House Faith Office and describes its responsibilities involving faith-based organizations, religious liberty, grants, and federal policy.
197. President Donald Trump Announces Appointments to the White House Faith Office | The White House | The White House | February 2025
Announces personnel selected for the administration's faith office and identifies religious leaders participating in its work.
198. Remarks at the Faith and Freedom Coalition's Road to Majority Conference | Donald J. Trump | American Presidency Project | 2017
Provides a primary-source transcript of Trump's remarks to a major conservative Christian political organization during his first presidency.
