Our Corner | Who Are the “Teavangelicals”?

Earlier today, Dr. Robert P. Jones opened a panel on “The Teavangelicals: Who They Are and Why They Are Important,” hosted by Zondervan and the Huffington Post, with some survey data on who exactly the “Teavangelicals” are. Dr. Jones pointed out that about 1-in-10 (11%) Americans say they identify with the Tea Party movement. Among those who identify as members of the Tea Party, 47% also say they consider themselves part of the Religious Right or Conservative Christian. These are the “Teavangelicals,” about whom panelist David Brody of CBN recently wrote a book, The Teavangelicals: The Inside Story of How the Evangelicals and the Tea Party are Taking Back America.

The event featured a lively discussion about the role of Tea Party members, white evangelical Protestants, and “Teavangelicals” in the 2012 election and beyond. Dr. Jones explored the issues where Tea Party members and white evangelical Protestants are aligned (mainly social issues like abortion and same-sex marriage), but also addressed potential areas of friction, where the presence of large numbers of white evangelical Protestants could actually shift the Tea Party’s goals (immigration and the minimum wage, to name a few.

To learn more about the intersections between the Tea Party and white evangelical Protestants, check out our fact sheet.