There can be this assumption that evangelicals are kind of like cicadas that go into dormancy

in between Iowa caucuses and the entire identity is built around what political movement

they're involved in and who they're supporting when that's just really not what evangelical

Christianity is about.

We're listening to Thru Line from NPR where we go back in time to understand the present.

Hey, I'm Randh Abdel Fattah.

I'm Ramteena at Ablui and on this episode the evangelical vote.

When Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died in September 2020, the door opened

on one of those rare opportunities to tip the ideological balance of the highest court

in the land.

It was an opportunity that one voting block in particular has been waiting for.

Evangelical Christians.

So now as we wait for the Supreme Court's ruling in a case that could overturn Roe v. Wade,

we thought it would be a good time to revisit our episode about how evangelical voters

became such a powerful force in U.S. politics.

According to a 2021 Gallup report, just over a third of Americans identify as evangelical,

but figuring out exactly what the term evangelical means is a little complicated.

For many, the word evangelical has become a shorthand for voters who are Christian, Republican,

and white.

I do think that it is functionally a white word.

Conservative Protestants of color are very reluctant to use that label because it is so loaded.

This is Molly Worthen.

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