Skip to main content

An Alan Keyes Effect? Examining Anti-Black Sentiment Among White Evangelicals

Political Behavior volume 32, pages 133–156 (2010)Cite this article

Abstract

Given its historical and contemporary importance, it is noteworthy that the relevant literature generally overlooks the role that religion and its accompanying values play in determining support for black candidates. In addressing this question, we review the historical and theological bases of evangelical attitudes toward blacks. We then present experimental results that examine evangelical attitudes toward blacks. We follow this with results from the 2006 Pennsylvania gubernatorial and U.S. Senate races to bolster the experimental findings. Finally, we discuss our findings and their implications for GOP attempts to recruit black candidates who can appeal to moderate white and black voters without losing support from the GOP’s evangelical base.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price includes VAT (Canada)

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Notes

  1. Admittedly, one might argue that conservative positions on these issues are not detrimental to either individual blacks or the black community, as they could be seen as helping to develop self-reliance.

  2. Watts represented Oklahoma’s Fourth Congressional District from 1995 to 2003. He is noteworthy because the distict is 79.9% Caucasian, and includes some of the most densely populated white evangelical counties in the state (The Washington Post Electons Census; Jones et al. 2002).

  3. See below for specific figures.

  4. This information, which was the same for the experimental and control groups, stated that the candidate was 45, married, had three children, and worked as a financial analyst.

  5. Taken from the survey item: “Based on this information, I believe this candidate is a”. Response scale ranges from 0 to 10, with “0” being Democrat, and “10” Republican.

  6. The significance of the model’s interaction between the black candidate, code statement, and subject ideology suggests that the code does have a conservative meaning apart from a religious message that increases subject candidate support. This finding leads us to consider the effect of candidate ideology apart from religious code statements in our second experiment.

  7. Importantly, the experiment and analysis of exit poll data to follow, while assessing anti-black affect among evangelicals, are less direct tests of evangelical candidate assessment based on the Protestant ethic and love of neighbor than was the first experiment. As such, we return to direct consideration of these religious values in our discussion and conclusion.

  8. These questions were: (1) How often do you attend church?, (2) How often do you read the Bible?, (3) There is no other way to salvation but through beliefe in Jesus Christ, (4) The Bible is the true word of God, both in matters of faith and in historic, geographic, and other secular matters.

  9. Since we manipulated candidate social conservatism in this experiment, using ideology as a predictor of subject support may be viewed as problematic. Therefore, we elect not to incorporate subject ideology in these models.

  10. Ohio and Maryland also had statewide races with black Republican candidates in 2006. The exit polls for these races, unlike for Pennsylvania, did not ask respondents if they considered themselves to be “born-again.” We did conduct analysis in all three states using the frequency of church attendance, and the results using this weaker measure of religiosity did not produce conclusions different from those presented above.

References

  • Abelson, R. P., & Levi, A. (1985). Decision making and decision theory. In G. Lindzey & E. Aronson (Eds.), The handbook of social psychology. New York: Random House.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barker, D. C., & Carman, C. J. (2000). The spirit of capitalism? Religious doctrine, values, and economic attitude constructs. Political Behavior, 22, 1–27.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bolce, L. (1992). Blacks and the Republican Party: The 20 percent solution. Political Science Quarterly, 107, 63–79.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cacioppo, J. T., & Petty, R. E. (1982). The need for cognition. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 42, 116–131.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Calfano, B. R. (2008). Christianity and the common good: Generating benevolence and purusing the decent equilibrium in international fieldwork. Journal of Church and State, 50, 101–118.

    Google Scholar 

  • Calfano, B. R., & Djupe, P. A. (2009). God talk: Religious cues and electoral support. Political Research Quarterly, 62, 329–339.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Calhoun-Brown, A. (1996). African American churches and political mobilization: The psychological impact of organizational resources. Journal of Politics, 58, 935–953.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Colleau, S. M., Glynn, K., Lybrand, S., Merelman, R. M., Mohan, P., & Wall, J. E. (1990). Symbolic racism in candidate evaluation: An experiment. Political Behavior, 12, 385–402.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Combs, M. W., & Welch, S. (1982). Blacks, whites, and attitudes toward abortion. Public Opinion Quarterly, 46, 510–520.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conover, P. J., & Feldman, S. (1984). How people organize the political world: A schematic model. American Journal of Political Science, 28, 95–126.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Devine, P. G. (1989). Stereotypes and prejudice: Their automatic and controlled components. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56, 5–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edgell, P., & Tranby, E. (2007). Religious influences on understandings of racial inequality in the United States. Social Problems, 54, 263–288.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International. (2004, 2008). http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/epolls/; http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/president/. Accessed 24 May 2009.

  • Emerson, M. O., & Smith, C. (2000). Divided by faith: Evangelical religion and the problem of race in America. New York: Oxford University Press.

  • Federico, C. M., & Sidanius, J. (2002). Sophistication and the antecedents of whites’ racial policy attitudes. Public Opinion Quarterly, 66, 145–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garces-Foley, K. (2008). Comparing catholic and evangelical integration efforts. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 47, 17–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glaser, J. M. (2001). The preference puzzle: Educational differences in racial-political attitudes. Political Behavior, 23, 313–334.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Green, J. C. (1994). The Christian right and the 1994 elections: An overview. In M. Rozell & C. Wilcox (Eds.), God at the grassroots: The Christian right in the 1994 elections. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Green, J. C., Guth, J. L., Smidt, C., & Kellstedt, L. A. (Eds.). (1996). Religion and the culture wars: Dispatches from the front. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Guth, J. L., Green, J. C., Smidt, C. E., Kellstedt, L. A., & Poloma, M. M. (1997). The bully pulpit: The politics of Protestant clergy. Topeka, KS: The University of Kansas Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hall, P. D. (1990). The history of religious philanthropy in America. In R. Wuthnow, V. A. Hodgkinson, et al. (Eds.), Faith and philanthropy in America: Exploring the role of religion in the volunteer sector. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

  • Haynes, S. (2002). Noah’s curse: The Biblical justification of American slavery. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heath, M. (2003). Soft-boiled masculinity: Renegotiating gender and racial ideologies in the promise keepers movement. Gender and Society, 17, 423–444.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hoch, M. (2008). In appeal to evangelicals, Obama backs expansion of faith-based programs. PBS news hour, July 1. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/vote2008/reportersblog/2008/07/in_appeal_to_evangelicals_obam.html. Accessed 10 Nov 2008.

  • Hutchings, V. L., & Valentino, N. A. (2004). The centrality of race in American politics. Annual Review of Political Science, 7, 383–408.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, H R., Jr., & Perkins, T. (2008). Personal faith, public policy. FrontLine.

  • Johnston, J. M., & Pennypacker, H. S. (1993). Strategies and tactics of behavioral research (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

  • Jones, D. E., Doty, S., Grammich, C., Horsch, J. E., Houseal, R., Lynn, M., et al. (2002). Religious congregations and membership in the United States 2000: An enumeration by region, state and county based on data reported for 149 religious bodies. Nashville, TN: Glenmary Research Center.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kellstedt, L. A., & Green, J. C. (1993). Knowing god’s many people: Denominational preference and political behavior. In D. C. Leege & L. A. Kellstedt (Eds.), Rediscovering the religious factor in American politics. Armonk, NY: Sharpe.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kellstedt, L. A., & Smidt, C. E. (1991). Measuring fundamentalism: An analysis of different operational strategies. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion., 30, 259–278.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kidd, Q., Diggs, H., Farooq, M., & Murray, M. (2007). Black voters, black candidates, and social issues: Does party identification matter? Social Science Quarterly, 88, 165–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kinder, D. R., & Sanders, L. M. (1996). Divided by color: Racial politics and democratic ideals. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Knuckey, J., & D’Andra Orey, B. (2000). Symbolic racism in the 1995 Louisiana gubernatorial election. Social Science Quarterly, 81, 1027–1035.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuo, D. (2006). Tempting faith: An inside story of political seduction. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Layman, G. (1997). Religion and political behavior in the United States: The impact of beliefs, affiliations, and commitment from 1980 to 1994. Public Opinion Quarterly, 61, 228–316.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Layman, G. (2001). The great divide: Religious and cultural conflict in American party politics. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leege, D. C., Wald, K. D., Krueger, B. S., & Mueller, P. D. (2002). The politics of cultural differences: Social change and voter mobilization strategies in the post-new deal period. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewis, H. T. (2001). Christian social witness. Boston: Cowley Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marsden, G. (1990). Religion and American culture. San Diego: Harcourt, Brace and Jovanovich.

    Google Scholar 

  • McDermott, M. (1998). Race and gender cues in low-information elections. Political Research Quarterly, 54, 895–918.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKivigan, J. R., & Snay, M. (Eds.). (1998). Religion and the antebellum debate over slavery. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mendelberg, T. (2001). The race card: Campaign strategies, implicit messages, and the norm of equality. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nemeth, R. J., & Luidens, D. A. (2003). The religious basis of charitable giving in America: A social capital perspective. In C. Smidt (Ed.), Religion as social capital: Producing the common good. Waco, TX: Baylor University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Newman, M. (2001). Getting right with god: Southern Baptists and desegregation, 1945–1995. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Niebuhr, R. (1968). In: R. H. Stone (Ed.), Faith and politics: A commentary on religious, social and political thought in a technological age. New York: George Braziller, Inc.

  • Obama, B. (2006). The audacity of hope: Thoughts on reclaiming the American dream. New York: Crown Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Page, B. I. (1978). Choices and echoes in presidential elections: Rational man and electoral democracy. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peffley, M., Hurwitz, J., & Sniderman, P. M. (1997). Racial stereotypes and whites’ political views of blacks in the context of welfare and crime. American Journal of Political Science, 41(1), 30–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Penning, J. M., & Smidt, C. E. (2002). Evangelicalism: The next generation. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. (2008). 12% still think Obama is Muslim. http://pewresearch.org/databank/dailynumber/?NumberID=509. Accessed 10 Nov 2008.

  • Roof, W. C., & McKinney, W. (1987). American mainline religion: Its changing shape and future. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rozell, M. J., & Wilcox, C. (Eds.). (1995). God at the grassroots: The Christian right in the 1994 elections. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schuman, H., Steeh, C., & Bobo, L. (1985). Racial attitudes in America: Trends and interpretations. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sears, D. O. (1986). College sophomores in the laboratory: Influences of a narrow data base on social psychology’s view of human nature. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 46, 515–530.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sears, D. O., & Valentino, N. A. (2002, August 31). Is the proof in the pulpit? Race, religion, and party realignment in the south. Paper prepared for presentation at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Boston, MA.

  • Sears, D. O., van Larr, C., Carrillo, M., & Kosterman., R. (1997). Is it really racism? The origins of white Americans opposition to race-targeted policies. The Public Opinion Quarterly, 61, 16–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smidt, C. (2004). Pulpit and politics: Clergy in American politics at the advent of the new millennium. Waco, TX: Baylor University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sniderman, P. M., Piazza, T., Tetlock, P. E., & Kendrick, A. (1991). The new racism. American Journal of Political Science, 35, 423–447.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sonenshein, R. J. (1990). Can black candidates win statewide elections? Political Science Quarterly, 105, 219–241.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Soper, J. C. (2001). Differing perspectives on politics among religious traditions. In C. E. Smidt (Ed.), In god we trust? Religion and American political life. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steensland, B., Park, J. Z., Regnerus, M. D., Robinson, L. D., Bradford Wilcox, W., & Woodberry, R. D. (2000). The measure of American religion: Toward improving the state of the art. Social Forces, 79, 291–318.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strickland, R. A., & Whicker, M. L. (1992). Comparing the wilder and Gantt campaigns: A model for black candidate success in statewide elections. PS: Political Science and Politics, 25, 204–212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Terkildsen, N. (1993). When white voters evaluate black candidates: The processing implications of candidate skin color, prejudice, and self monitoring. American Journal of Political Science, 37, 1032–1053.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, J. C., Hogg, M. A., Oakes, P. J., Reicher, S. D., & Wetherell, M. S. (1987). Rediscovering the social group: A self-categorization theory. Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wald, K. D. (2003). Religion and politics in the United States (4th ed.). Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wald, K. D., & Calhoun-Brown, A. (2007). Religion and politics in the United States (5th ed.). Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weber, M. (1958). The Protestant work ethic and the spirit of capitalism. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weston, W. J. (2003). Leading from the center: Strengthening the pillars of the church. Louisville, KY: Geneva Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilcox, C., Jelen, T. G., & Leege, D. C. (1993). Religious group identifications: Toward a cognitive theory of religious mobilization. In D. C. Leege & L. A. Kellstedt (Eds.), Rediscovering the religious factor in American politics. Armonk, NY: Sharpe.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilcox, C., & Larson, C. (2006). Onward Christian soldiers? The religious right in American politics (3rd ed.). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, L. F. (1990). White/black perceptions of the electability of black political candidates. In L. J. Barker (Ed.), Black electoral politics. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wuthnow, R. (1991). Acts of compassion: Caring for others and helping ourselves. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zwier, R. (1982). Born again politics: The new Christian right in America. Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Political Science, Missouri State University, 901 South National Avenue, Springfield, MO, 65807, USA

    Brian Robert Calfano

  2. Department of Political Science, University of North Texas, 1155 Union Circle # 305340, Denton, TX, 76203, USA

    Philip Paolino

Authors
  1. Brian Robert Calfano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Philip Paolino
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brian Robert Calfano.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Calfano, B.R., Paolino, P. An Alan Keyes Effect? Examining Anti-Black Sentiment Among White Evangelicals. Polit Behav 32, 133–156 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11109-009-9095-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11109-009-9095-z

Keywords

  • Anti-black effect
  • Evangelical voters
  • Religious code language
  • Protestant work ethic
  • Ideology