For decades, Republicans have used the religious right as a powerful, and ultimately dangerous, part of its political coalition.
Since the Reagan era and televangelist Jerry Falwell Sr.’s “Moral Majority” movement, the Republican Party has used their troubling positions on women’s rights, LGBTQ+ equality, reproductive justice, immigration policy, and drug laws as wedge issues – building a movement of religious fundamentalism that gave birth to the present-day MAGA movement. The rise of right-wing extremism has changed the face of American politics itself, culminating in the selection of a far-right Supreme Court majority that has since overturned Roe v. Wade, ended Affirmative Action, and eviscerated the Voting Rights Act. What we’ve seen since is a new generation of far-right politicians using religion as a weapon to restrict freedoms, ban immigrants, censor teachers, and otherwise bludgeon the Constitution.
Meanwhile, the strong bonds that the Democratic Party sustained for decades – especially with the Black Christian church and Jewish communities of faith – have tattered in the years since the Civil Rights movement. Once upon a time, Democrats saw leaders like Rev. Jesse Jackson and Jimmy Carter, a lifelong Sunday School teacher, build durable multi-ethnic, multi-religious political coalitions in the 1970s – rooted in compassionate, justice-oriented definitions of faith that inspired their political agendas. Less than a decade later, Democrats had all but ceded the argument. Houses of worship that sparked movements like “Souls to the Polls” struggled to find resources to organize voters. Baseless attacks on Democratic candidates being “Godless” and “immoral,” especially in the wake of the Clinton impeachment, went politely unanswered. Centers of faith that had once been a launchpad for progressive political leadership suddenly became a liability in the era of culture wars.
Then, Donald Trump – a twice-divorced, 34-time-convicted embodiment of no things Holy – held up a Bible in front of St. John’s Church after violently expelling peaceful protesters in 2020, and proclaimed to be “God’s chosen leader” for the nation.
Then, progressive pastors traded their pulpits for politics.
The most notable was the 2020 election of Rev. Raphael Warnock, pastor of Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church, the same congregation once led by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Upon his election, Warnock became the first Black Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate from the former confederacy. He has continued to grow his profile as a political and moral counter to the far-right and – both on Capitol Hill and in the religious community – has become a voice of clarity on abortion rights, voting rights, and an end to the death penalty.
But that’s not all. In recent years, more Democrats of all faiths have become prominent voices and are now seen as quintessential to shaping the Democratic Party’s platform and agenda. Senator Bernie Sanders and Mayor Zohran Mamdani are two such examples. While not religious leaders, both have been compelled to dispel the zero-sum and divisive politics of white Christian nationalism by leaning into the progressive values and proud American heritage of their own faiths.
In 2026, even more voices are rising to the occasion; and Democrats are leaning in.
Texas’ James Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian, has notably put his fight against Christian nationalism at the center of his campaign for the U.S. Senate. Rather than shy away from his religion, Talarico has made it a central feature. He’s vehemently refused to accept that there’s a “set Christian orthodoxy,” asserting instead that God judges not on what you say, but on what you do. Talarico has championed abortion rights, affordability, and immigration reform as examples of “loving thy neighbor as thyself.” In Texas, Talarico’s compassionate Christianity just might be enough to convince the ruby-red state to send him to the U.S. Senate.
And in Kansas, Adam Hamilton – pastor of the nation’s largest United Methodist congregation based near Kansas City – is catching national headlines for his unexpectedly tight race for the U.S. Senate. A self-described “moderate,” Hamilton has been a prominent voice this cycle against a vocal minority of right-wing Christian nationalists. After winning the Democratic primary in August, Hamilton has criss-crossed the state on a platform focused on ending the chaos in Washington and bringing people together to solve the tough problems facing Kansas and the country. And it’s getting attention. Hamilton, the same candidate who carries a small Bible in his back pocket, was attacked this past week by Vice President J.D. Vance, who called Hamilton’s views “left-wing radicalism dressed in the skin suit of our religion.” What Vance is really saying isn’t hard to miss: unless you’re MAGA, our Christianity isn’t for you. In spite of the attacks, most recent polls have Hamilton narrowly leading Republican incumbent Roger Marshall in a state where Democrats haven’t elected a U.S. Senator in nearly a century.
Faith of all kinds is and always will be important to our collective American experience, whether we share the same faith or none at all. Religious communities will always be places where we gather, learn our place in the world, grapple with hard questions, and learn the ways we treat our neighbors.
However, if the far-right has proven anything, it’s that they can also be places used to divide, misinform, and disengage. Progressive candidates rooted in these communities are proving that they can and must be a part of the coalition-building Democrats envision in the years to come.
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🗺️FIELD MAP
Five Places / Races I’m Watching Closely this Week
We’re tracking over 100 key races and candidates that are essential to defending freedom, justice, and democracy at every level. Each week, I’ll share five that you should follow, too.
📍 NEWNAN, GEORGIA
Democrats are expanding their coalition in the fight for the State Capitol.
With early voting starting today in Georgia, we’re bringing the state in focus once again. Keisha Lance Bottoms is working overtime to build the enthusiasm needed to finally give Democrats control of the governing agenda at the state level. Georgia Democrats know that also means expanding the map in the race for the Georgia General Assembly. Many promising young progressive candidates are working hard to put once-safe red districts in play. They include 24-year-old wunderkind JerMarkus Jacobs, running to unseat a five-term Republican state senator outside of Atlanta. A former intern at both the Georgia State Capitol and the White House, this Georgia State University student is running an aggressive campaign demanding more accountable leadership that delivers for his native Newnan.
Early Voting in Georgia begins today, Tuesday, October 13th and ends Friday, October 30th. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3rd. Make a plan at www.peoplefor.org/vote.
📍 TENNESSEE
Young candidates focused on change could help win U.S. House majority.
Despite Republican attempts to gerrymander Democratic voters out of representation in Congress, Tennessee Democrats have fielded an energetic group of federal candidates that may defy maps. Justin J. Pearson’s bold campaign for the 9th congressional district is one to watch – but not the only one. A new generation of progressive leaders is changing the traditional campaign formula all over the state. In the 2nd district surrounding Knoxville, 33-year-old Michaela Barnett is countering four-term Rep. Tim Burchett with a hopeful, results-focused campaign on healthcare, jobs, infrastructure, and fighting corruption. Chaz Molder has already gained a reputation as a unifier and problem-solver since being elected Columbia’s youngest-ever mayor in 2018, making his Democratic candidacy for the 5th district a compelling answer to the most unproductive and divisive Congress in modern history.
Early Voting in Tennessee begins Wednesday, October 14th. Make a plan at www.peoplefor.org/vote.
📍 MICHIGAN STATE HOUSE
Progress post-Whitmer is about more than one ballot line.
Michigan’s narrow Democratic majorities in both houses of the legislature helped Gov. Gretchen Whitmer advance a bold and aggressive agenda – including universal background checks for gun sales, protecting reproductive rights, repealing right-to-work laws, and providing free school meals for every K-12 student. But progress has been harder since losing the House majority in 2024. Michigan Dems are putting their faith in a few familiar faces who narrowly lost their seats in the last election to wage a 2026 comeback. Jaime Churches, a 5th-grade teacher from Grosse Ile is in a rematch with Turning Point USA field organizer Rylee Linting to take back her 27th district seat. Jim Haadsma is also staging a return in the 44th district. Compelling new faces include Sarah Pounds, a housing advocate running in Oakland County’s 54th district; Alex Hawkins, an Army veteran, national guardsman, and former congressional staffer running in the 55th; Tom Turner, a former DOD official who resigned in protest against Trump’s policies, running in the 57th; and 29-year-old Joseph McClusky, running a ambitious, people-focused campaign for a normally tough 86th district in western Michigan.
📍 NEVADA
What happens here could change Washington.
After sticking with Democrats at the presidential level since 2008, Nevada proved to still be one of the swingiest of swing states, going to Trump in 2024. This year, Nevada Dems hope they can help put the brakes on his second-term agenda by growing their numbers in Congress. The only House district currently held by Republicans is the Reno and Carson City-based 2nd district, represented by retiring Rep. Mark Amodei. Teresa Benitez-Thompson – chief of staff to Nevada Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Aaron Ford, who also served as majority leader of the Nevada Assembly – is polling within the margin of error against Republican Dave Flippo. The Vegas-based 4th district has recently been moved up on the Democrats’ priority list, with incumbent Steven Horsford vying for reelection. The first Black person to represent Nevada in Congress and former Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, Horsford won reelection in 2024 with 52.7% of the vote.
Early Voting in Nevada begins Saturday, October 17th. Make a plan at www.peoplefor.org/vote.
📍 IOWA
Rob Sand is hoping to once again be the candidate Democrats can count on.
Iowa hasn’t elected a Democrat to the Governor’s mansion since 2006, but Rob Sand – the 44-year-old State Auditor and only Democrat currently elected statewide – could once again defy the odds. The former Assistant State Attorney General (who turned down a Harvard admission to attend the University of Iowa Law School) could be the nation’s second-youngest governor, born just one day before Arkansas’ Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Running on a reputation as a no-nonsense defender of the taxpayer and reliable straight-talker, Sand’s commonsense agenda promising to lower costs and reform government to work for working people may just break through. An Emerson College poll published last week put Sand 4 points ahead of Republican Zach Lahn, 49% / 45%.
