Evangelical Group Pledges $62 Million To Support Trump Campaign
Former President Donald Trump has proven once and again throughout the primary season that he has the support of most Republican voters in his bid for a third straight GOP presidential nomination. One bloc within the party that has been particularly receptive to his bid for a second term in the White House has been evangelical Christians.
This week, an influential conservative evangelical organization announced a major plan to invest tens of millions of dollars to help boost voter turnout on behalf of the former president.
The $62 million set to be spent during this election cycle represents a $10 million increase over the amount Faith & Freedom spent in 2020.
According to Ralph Reed, who leads the organization, much of that investment will go toward direct outreach efforts including voter registration, door-knocking campaigns and phone calls or texts. The group is also planning to distribute millions of documents that will be available to parishioners in churches, specifically those in crucial swing states.
As Reed explained, the plan to visit homes and reach voters directly is likely “the largest effort on the right outside of the Republican National Committee ever.”
Despite some concerns from evangelical voters over Trump’s personal life, Reed concluded that the former president cemented his position with most of those voters with his record on issues including abortion.
“He was so pro-life that it was astonishing,” Reed said. “And as a result of that, he’s going to get more running room from the pro-life grassroots than a typical candidate might get or that he would have gotten in ‘16. In ‘16 I think there was a lack of trust, and now there is total trust.”
Financial records indicate that Trump could use the influx of funding. Although Trump has maintained a polling advantage over President Joe Biden, the incumbent candidate has an edge when it comes to his campaign warchest.
The Republican National Committee, which recently elected new leadership amid concerns over its spending record, currently has roughly $8 million in cash on hand. By comparison, the Democratic National Committee has roughly three times that amount.
Reed acknowledged this disparity in touting the infusion his organization has committed to make.
“In this business you’re paid to worry, and we certainly have seen in recent cycles — particularly in the statewide races and especially the Senate races — we’ve seen the spending gap become overwhelming, serious and debilitating,” he said.
