What the Midterms Say About White Christian Nationalism

Last updated on: November 9, 2026 at 9:09 am by Brad Thibodeaux

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What the Midterms Say About White Christian Nationalism 2026-11-09T09:09:15-05:00 Brad Thibodeaux

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Christian Nationalism has been in the news more and more since the 2024 Presidential Election. Project 2025, the shorthand for the Heritage Foundations document in 2023, has been the outline for the current administration. While it is not an outright Christian Nationalist document, critics note that there are many things in the mandate that align with Christian Nationalism.

The last two years of the Trump administration has pushed through many of the ideas of the Heritage Foundation’s Mandate for Leadership. According to this tracker, 55% of the goals of Project 2025 have been implemented.

It’s important to know that many religious groups are not in favor of Project 2025. The Interfaith Alliance published this article back in 2024 outlining the potential harms with Project 2025. But what does Christian Nationalism really want in the United States?

Christian Nationalism

Christian Nationalism – and more importantly, White Christian Nationalism – is not new in this country. In fact, the settling of this land is the first example of White Christian Nationalism. They saw themselves as entering the new promised land where, like the Israelites in the Hebrew Scriptures, they needed to purge the Canaanites from the land. The Puritan Colonizers settled to create a place where people could worship freely. As long as they were White and their type of Christian.

I’ve written about Christian Nationalism before. And I am honestly tired of having to talk about it. Christian Nationalism seeks to use the power of the State to enforce Christian morals on the people. But this power is not the Jesus-power of the crucifixion. This power is that of a violent insurrection – like Barabbas in the crucifixion story. Christian Nationalism does not find support in the Gospels.

We also saw the rise of the Seven Mountain Mandate several years ago. This is the goal of a subsect of radically conservative Christians called Dominionists. The Seven Mountain Mandate calls for Christians to excert control over the seven main “mountains” of the United States. These are religion, education, family, government, media, the arts, and business.

Some people don’t realize that Christian Nationalism is also harmful to the Church. White American Evangelicals are more likely to agree that “immigrants entering this country illegally are poisoning the blood of the country”. This echos the rhetoric of the German Church during the rise of Nazism. We also see the White American Church raising up Trump and blurring the line between him and God.

Midterm Results as a Repudiation of Christian Nationalism

As we saw above, Christian Nationalism is currently a major issue in our politics. And the midterm results can be seen as a report card for the last two years of the push towards Project 2025 and White Christian Nationalism. What’s most interesting to me is that seven progressive Christians won seats in this midterm.

The Hill notes that this election was driven by the youth vote. Younger voters are looking for something new, and it seems they reject Project 2025 and the Trump administration. James Talarico – maybe the most well-known of the Christian’s running – spoke against the current agenda. His faith centered in conversation around healthcare and immigration. Sarah Trone Garriott, who is a Lutheran minister, won in an Iowa House race. She is quoted saying that the Religious Right filled the vacuum of faith and politics until now. But this election seems to be saying that people are looking for a new way to view faith in politics. LaKesha Womack won in North Carolina, unseating the incumbent in a heavily gerrymandered district. According to her website, she “works with faith leaders and organizations across the country to explore the intersection of faith, justice, and public life.” This is just a small selection of races won by Christian ministers and organizers but it is reflective of the mood of the country as a whole.

What Now?

Did the results of the midterm elections match your expectations? Are you feeling hopeful or disappointed? No matter the results, we cannot claim that our work as a Christian is done. We need to continue to work for justice for all in the spirit of the Love of God shown through Jesus the Christ.

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