Poll: 30 Percent of Born-Again Christians May Not Vote
According to tracking poll data from Reuters, 30 percent of born-again Christians who attend church services at least once a week will not vote—or will vote for a third-party candidate—in November’s general election.
That piece of new data seems to confirm an argument made by U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) that now-presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump would have difficulty winning the general election. But there’s more to the eye-opening data that one should consider.
The same polling also suggests the remaining 70 percent of committed Christians are backing the New York businessman. He currently leads former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the current Democratic Party front-runner by 28 points.
Trump wins the support of nearly half—49 percent—of the born-again Christians who attend weekly church services who were polled. Clinton, on the other hand, was the choice of just 21 percent.
One month ago, the roles were reversed. Clinton led with the support of 40 percent of committed Christians, while Trump garnered just 34 percent support in a head-to-head match up. Just 26 percent said they planned to sit out the election, or vote for a third-party candidate at the time.
The numbers indicate that while a number of supporters of former GOP presidential candidates U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Ohio Gov. John Kasich have joined the #NeverTrump effort, even more have said they will back the billionaire. The current one-week trend line shows support for Trump increasing, while support for Clinton continues to wane.