donald j. trump rarely goes to church, said he<u+2019>s never sought forgiveness for his sins, and in his acceptance speech early wednesday morning, never mentioned god. religion was almost invisible during the presidential campaign, and yet it is the missing piece in understanding mr. trump<u+2019>s victory. the christian right worked largely under the national media<u+2019>s radar this year, but it helped deliver the presidency to a thrice-married mogul who bragged about groping women and has been accused by multiple women of actually doing it . they were willing to forgive mr. trump<u+2019>s personal transgressions because he stoked their fears that a hillary clinton administration would take away their religious liberties, use their tax dollars to fund late-term abortions at home and abroad, and expand the rights of gay and transgender people, political analysts said. mr. trump warned at rallies and at conservative christian gatherings that he alone was their last hope to protect them against a changing culture, using the refrain, <u+201c>this is your last chance.<u+201d> now that he has won, evangelical leaders say they are confident mr. trump will deliver on the political promises he made to them. these include appointing a conservative to the supreme court, defunding planned parenthood, protecting businesses that refuse to provide services for same-sex weddings and rescinding the mandate in the affordable care act that requires insurance coverage for birth control. and with gov. mike pence of indiana, an evangelical with a record of legislating against abortion and same-sex marriage , as vice president, christian leaders say they feel reassured they will have access to the white house and a seat at the table. <u+201c>i am confident he will do as president what he said he would do as a candidate,<u+201d> said ralph reed, chairman of the faith and freedom coalition, who helped mobilize christian voters for mr. trump. white evangelicals and catholics voted for mr. trump at even higher rates than they voted for the last two republican presidential nominees, john mccain and mitt romney, according to an analysis by the pew research center . <u+201c>the wall of white christian voters held,<u+201d> said robert p. jones, chief executive of the public religion research institute and author of <u+201c>the end of white christian america.<u+201d> white evangelicals make up 26 percent of the american electorate, and 81 percent of them voted for mr. trump, despite loud criticism by some in their ranks that he was racist, misogynistic and unfit for the presidency. only 16 percent voted for mrs. clinton. catholics, who make up 23 percent of the electorate, supported mr. trump over mrs. clinton by 52 percent to 45 percent. white catholics voted for him in far greater proportions than hispanic catholics, who favored mrs. clinton over mr. trump, 67 to 26 percent. <u+201c>there was no way he had a chance without the pop of that catholic vote,<u+201d> mr. reed said. mr. trump was not the first choice of most evangelicals or catholics. but he gradually won their trust, speaking at liberty university in virginia, the largest christian college in the country, doing nine interviews with pat robertson<u+2019>s christian broadcasting network and building relationships with pentecostal preachers . in june, he met with nearly one thousand evangelical and catholic leaders from around the country in a hotel ballroom in new york. in october, he sent a letter to the catholic leadership conference in denver, promising, <u+201c>i will fight for you.<u+201d> mrs. clinton, in contrast, failed to connect with white evangelicals and catholics, said michael wear, a political consultant who served as a faith adviser for president obama. <u+201c>evangelicals feel embattled, they feel isolated, and trump understood that and appealed to them on completely machiavellian terms. but hillary actually confirmed their sense of isolation by not reaching out to them,<u+201d> said mr. wear, the author of <u+201c>reclaiming hope: lessons learned in the obama white house about the future of faith in america.<u+201d> <u+201c>hillary<u+2019>s lack of outreach basically told evangelicals, <u+2018>you need trump as much as trump says you do.<u+2019><u+201d> as recently as five years ago, christians were far more judgmental of politicians accused of transgressions in their personal lives. now, in the era of mr. trump, there is more tolerance, especially among evangelicals, according to a study by mr. jones<u+2019>s institute. the group often called <u+201c>values voters<u+201d> was not dissuaded by headlines about mr. trump sexually harassing women, lying, refusing to pay taxes or stiffing contractors. <u+201c>trump has really changed their entire political ethic. it<u+2019>s moved from a principled basis to more of a utilitarian ethic, where the ends justify the means,<u+201d> mr. jones said. grace and forgiveness are at the core of christian faith, and it was only natural for evangelicals to extend that concept to mr. trump, said eric metaxas, an evangelical writer and radio host in new york city whose endorsement surprised many of his friends. <u+201c>we understand. we<u+2019>re all screwed up. we all sin. to judge people by fussy moral standards is something i think is no longer the issue it used to be,<u+201d> mr. metaxas said. <u+201c>i think a lot of people believe he<u+2019>s not the person he was in 2005,<u+201d> the year mr. trump was recorded on videotape saying he made a habit of kissing and grabbing women. there were prominent evangelicals publicly opposed to mr. trump <u+2014> a phenomenon that mr. reed argued only brought more attention to those who supported him. but now that mr. trump is headed for the white house, some of those <u+201c>never trump<u+201d> evangelicals are coming around. russell moore, president of the ethics & religious liberty commission of the southern baptist convention, said he would <u+201c>give the new president the benefit of the doubt.<u+201d> if nixon could go to china, dr. moore said, mr. trump could be a <u+201c>unifying figure.<u+201d> follow laurie goodstein @lauriegnyt on twitter. for breaking news and in-depth reporting, follow @nytnational. a version of this article appears in print on november 12, 2016, on page a21 of the new york edition with the headline: evangelicals believe trump will keep promises. order reprints | today's paper | subscribe
religious right believes donald trump will deliver on his promises
laurie goodstein