In an attempt to gain support among evangelical voters, Donald Trump spoke at Liberty University on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
The evangelical vote is important to Republican candidates — especially among Iowans.
“Although evangelical voters make up only about 25 percent of all voters, about three-quarters of these voters support Republican candidates. In Iowa, evangelicals are a much higher percentage of the caucus participants — around 60 percent in 2008,” said David McLennan, a visiting professor of political science at Meredith University, in an email.
Ted Cruz has so far been the most successful in garnering support from evangelicals. On Dec. 8, Cruz was endorsed by the influential Iowa evangelical leader Bob Vander Plaats.
Despite a warm introduction from Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr., Trump’s speech did not go off without a hitch. His most notable blunder came when he quoted a bible verse as being from “two Corinthians,” instead of second Corinthians.
Many students at Liberty also doubted the authenticity of Trump’s Christian values.
“I see and hear a man who doesn’t think he needs forgiveness, vows to seek revenge and publicly humiliates others. I don’t see a man who embodies Christian values such as love, joy or peace,” said Chief Justice in the Liberty University Student Government Association Jacob Broadway in an email. 
Some Liberty students also took issue with the fact that Donald Trump spoke on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Elijah McGowan, a Liberty University Law student, was among those who protested outside the venue where Trump spoke.
“Christ was very clear that He desired His followers to live by love, in humility — like he did. Mr. Trump likes to speak arrogantly about his success, he rejects any need for forgiveness and he has made a living off of dividing others,” McGowan said in an email.
Although it is doubtful how much Trump resonated with Liberty students, McLennan said his speech still helped his reputation in the evangelical community.
“Trump's speech at Liberty, although it did not convince any of the attendees of his theological expertise, was important to Trump's standing within the evangelical community because it showed that he values voters in this segment of the Republican base,” McLennan said.
Courting evangelicals can be a difficult thing. Broadway emphasized that evangelicals come from many different backgrounds, making it a struggle for candidates to focus on particular issues.
“I actually think there’s something of a misconception about all Christians supporting a single candidate for President of these United States. Evangelical Christianity includes people from all walks of life who find our unity in our identity as people saved by the finished work of Jesus Christ on the Cross,” Broadway said.
Despite this, there are some issues that are important to most evangelicals.
“Our political views often vary, but several themes unite," Broadway said. "First, evangelicals affirm that life is sacred from conception to death. Second, evangelicals are concerned with loving our neighbor, and how best to do so. Lastly, the church is concerned with the universal freedom to exercise one’s religious, or areligious, beliefs."
state@dailytarheel.com
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