Trump’s victory last Tuesday was more than a referendum on the D.C. establishment. It was a cultural moment where ordinary, decent Americans rejected elites in every influential sector. Americans rejected a corrupt medical establishment, a lying media, a perverted school system, a weak military, and last but not least, an increasingly irrelevant evangelical church.
The evangelical turnout was less than in previous years, but 81% still voted for President Trump. We were somewhat surprised by this. Despite years of psychological warfare on the evils and pretended evils of Trump, the evangelical voter base rejected many of their leaders and voted for Trump anyway.
Evangelical leaders were largely quiet on the evening of Trump’s victory, but a few did express their disapproval. Russell Moore chalked Trump’s victory up to an infatuation Americans have with entertainment. David French encouraged Christians to stand courageous in the face of MAGA’s cruelty. John Piper tweeted that the election results showed that God had “delivered us from one evil” but “now tests us with another.” Phil Vischer, the creator of Veggie Tales, said “We’re about to see just how incompatible ‘MAGA’ and Christianity really are” based on jokes Trump’s legal defender Mike Davis made mocking how the Left thinks Trump is going to put kids in cages.
The Lesser of Two Evils is Biblical
One of the most insidious and dangerous approaches the evangelical elites pushed was to discount the “lesser of two evils” view. Many evangelical pastors realized that neither choice in the presidential race was genuinely Christian, but one was far superior from a policy standpoint.
Nonetheless, many evangelical leaders, such as Karen Swallow Prior and Thabiti Anyawbile, believe that “when you are faced with two evils you choose neither.” Many bragged that they didn’t vote for one of the major candidates because of policy, and they rejected the other because of personality. This has never been a good or biblical approach to any area of life.
It’s certainly not leadership. When considering the political spectrum and the choices we are given in any election it must be remembered that all the candidates are evil (Rom. 3:23). If one gives or takes the never vote for any evil approach, they are hypocrites if they have voted in any election.
I (Tom) had a conversation with my friend, former Georgia Congressman Jody Hice, recently. He is now president of Family Research Council Action. We agreed that the objective is not really voting for the lesser evil but the one most likely to lessen the overall evil. In the current election, that choice was not hard. It is difficult to understand how any professing Christian could vote for a Democrat given their party platform (see the comparison here).
In response to David’s sin, God gave him three choices. All were “evil.” Not to choose would have been a copout and likely left him with the worst of three choices (cf. 2 Sam. 24:10-17). We are often faced in life with choices where neither are “good.” If your doctor says your illness is terminal you are likely to face a choice between dying or going through a painful and difficult course of treatment, which may or may not save your life. You will be forced to decide for the lesser of evils and you will often need the Lord’s direction (cf. Prov. 3:5-6).
We Need the Lord’s Wisdom
When we face the dilemmas of life, those of us who know and love the Lord Jesus can trust Him and depend on the Holy Spirit’s direction to help us choose the best option, even though it may have some evil in it. We are in the world, and we face its evil on a regular basis, but we are not to be “of” the world. Choosing which option will bring about the least evil is wise (cf. James 1:2-8).
Reactions from Evangelical Elites
Some of the reactions, the few there were, were along the lines of congratulating Trump and asking God to give him wisdom. For example, J.D. Greear, who called Trump out for betraying “the heart of the Pro-Life movement” last April and has insinuated numerous times that Trump is somehow racist and his policies incompatible with Christian values, said there is “much to be hopeful for” after the election.
For those of us who remember the 2016 and 2020 elections, including all the denouncements and vocal concerns from evangelical leaders concerning Trump, it’s worth asking: What made this election and the aftermath so relatively quiet? Even Evangelicals for Harris had to rely on B-list voices to carry their message.
I (Jon) think what explains it is the fact that evangelical leaders have taken a rather potent beating since 2020 for their BLM, COVID-19, and MeToo compromises. Their churches were split. Their duplicitous nature was finally nailed down by films like Enemies Within the Church and books like Shepherds for Sale. Their silence does not necessarily signify a sea change in opinion. It is more likely some self-preservation is in the works.
I’ve observed these changes closely since 2017 or so. The diversity pushes that were supposed to save denominations like the SBC have been a failure. More conservative evangelicals learned by and large that attracting Left-leaning Christians while keeping Right-leaning Christians happy isn’t possible. Eventually, people like Charlie Dates, Beth Moore, and Russell Moore will leave your group and denounce it to the world. In trying to satisfy them you end up losing them and the people who wanted to continue to keep both orthodoxy and conservative politics.
What Does This Mean for the Future?
Southern Baptists are actively shifting their strategy in real-time. Nathan Finn, a professor at North Greenville University, was active in tying Trump to nefarious racially insensitive actors and movements during his first term. Yet in the aftermath of Trump’s 2024 victory, he maintained that “demographics are not destiny,” socioeconomic factors more determined outcomes, and that churches needed to be welcoming to members of different economic and, by implication, political groups. The same strategy to make congregations politically diverse is present, but Southern Baptists may be backing off the unpopular DEI strategy, at least with their rhetoric. Dean Inserra, the pastor of City Church in Tallahassee, Florida, who aggressively opposed Conservative Baptist Network for their political flavor, surprisingly expressed his positive opinion about Christian political engagement leading into the election. He even signaled his disapproval of “third way” political strategies that pretend a moral equivalency between both sides.
Whether evangelical pew sitters reestablish trust with leaders they don’t seem to be currently following remains to be seen, but it is unlikely. The evangelical brand is in tatters. But, this does present an opportunity.
The Opportunity of Failed Leadership
Faithful pastors with virtue need to ascend. Whether they appear and their influence materializes is the biggest open question. There is an open market for that kind of leadership on the Right which evangelicals by and large belong to. The failed leaders of yesterday who can’t seem to even admit they were wrong are now being pushed into greater silence and irrelevance. You can expect they won’t open their organizations to new more right-leaning pastors, but new organizations will form.
One thing is certain. Evangelical Christianity is currently plagued by the celebrity pastor syndrome. We hope this election will restore confidence in the local church and the many thousands of unknown pastors who are leading their congregations to be faithful to Christ and to be salt and light in their communities. We believe that you can be a pastor and a patriot, and our prayer is for that tribe to increase.
The second Trump era should be an era of restoration. Restoring faith in our government. Restoring faith in our leaders. Restoring faith in God and His word without compromise and left-leaning political speak.
Let’s get to work and rebuild what’s been torn down!
Jon Harris is an author, producer, and cultural commentator. He hosts the Conversations That Matter podcast.
