Jesus is their savior, Trump is their candidate. Ex-president's backers say he shares faith, values

Donald Trump’s support from white evangelicals and other conservative Christians is as strong as ever. And he’s increasingly infusing his campaign events with Christian rhetoric and imagery. In some ways, this is a familiar story. The former president won about 8 in 10 white evangelical Christians’ votes in 2016 and 2020. He has maintained support from this group in early primary contests this year, even though Republican voters had several openly conservative Christian candidates to choose from. None of them faced the legal troubles and misconduct allegations he does. This frustrates the minority of conservative evangelicals who see Trump as a poser and would-be authoritarian.