Some LDS members losing faith in Trump, GOP tries to win them back

Photo illustration. | Photo by zkolra, iStock/Getty Images Plus, St. George News

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Yasser Sanchez has twice worked to defeat Joe Biden’s bids for the vice presidency by building support for Republican candidates among his fellow members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It wasn’t hard.

In this Aug. 11, 2020, photo Yasser Sanchez, a lifelong Republican, member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and immigration attorney, is supporting Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, repelled by Republican President Donald Trump, shown here in Mesa, Ariz.. | Photo by Ross D. Franklin, Associated Press, St. George News

Now, the lifelong Republican finds himself in the surprising position of supporting Biden — and repelled from his party, he says, by President Donald Trump.

“We’re taught to be steady, to be basically the opposite of the way he’s lived his life,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez’s view isn’t as unusual as the Trump campaign would like.

While many conservative-leaning religious voters warmed to him long ago, Trump has struggled to win over Latter-day Saints. His penchant for foul language clashes with the church’s culture teaching modesty and self-restraint, and his isolationist foreign policy is anathema to a faith spreading rapidly around the world.

It hasn’t helped that Trump has made a show of feuding with Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, among the best-known members of the church.

The church does not back candidates or political parties.

Once just a headache for the White House, Trump’s relative weakness with Latter-day Saints is now a growing political liability. His standing has slumped in several pivotal states, including Arizona, where members of the faith make up 6% of the population. Many are clustered around Phoenix, areas where Republicans have struggled to hold their ground in the Trump era.

This past week, the Trump campaign launched its Latter-day Saints for Trump Coalition, sending Vice President Mike Pence to Mesa, a suburb of Phoenix, for the kickoff. Pence, who often serves as Trump’s emissary to religious conservatives, appealed to church members’ opposition to abortion rights and longstanding concerns over religious liberty.

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign rally Monday, March 2, 2020, at Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas. | Photo by Michael Wyke, Associated Press, St. George News

Trump “has stood for the religious freedom of every American of every faith every day of this administration,” Pence told the group of about 200 people.

Last month, the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., hosted a conference call with reporters to commemorate Pioneer Day, a church holiday celebrating the arrival of the first church settlers in Utah’s Salt Lake Valley in 1847. Trump Jr., said he was in Utah at the time for a fishing trip.

Still, signs of discontent were clear. More than 200 people identifying themselves as Republicans who belong to the church published an open letter Wednesday declaring their opposition to Trump and calling him “the antithesis of so much the Latter-day Saints community believes.”

To be sure, Latter-day Saints have traditionally voted Republican and are likely to remain part of the GOP coalition. Clustered in solidly Republican states, they have long been a major force in GOP primaries and local politics across the West, but they have not held much sway in national elections.

Among members of the faith, 67% voted for Republicans, and 56% said they approved of Trump’s job performance. By comparison, 80% of white evangelical Christians nationwide voted for Republican candidates, and nearly as many said they approve of Trump, according to an analysis of 1,528 midterm voters who are members of the faith, based on data from VoteCast, a broad national survey conducted for The Associated Press by NORC at the University of Chicago.

In this Aug. 11, 2020, photo Norma Hastings, a 71-year-old Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints member from Gilbert, waits for Vice President Mike Pence to speak at the “Latter-Day Saints for Trump” Coalition launch event in Mesa, Ariz. Hastings said she thinks Pence “keeps Trump on the right road.” | Photo by Ross D. Franklin, Associated Press, St. George News

Even Latter-day Saints who turned out to hear Pence this past week acknowledged they were disappointed in Trump’s infidelity or uncouth language. But they also viewed it as a tolerable consequence of electing a straight-talking man unafraid to ruffle feathers.

Although Trump rarely speaks about his faith or attends church services, these supporters said they believed he was a defender of religious freedoms, which is of paramount importance to members of a faith that settled in what is now Utah to escape persecution.

“We’re able to continue practicing our religion. That’s how our country was founded,” said Norma Hastings, a 71-year-old church member from Gilbert. She said she thinks Pence “keeps Trump on the right road.”

Jenn Crandall, a 48-year-old pianist from Mesa, said she looks to other figures in the administration and the campaign for connection.

“I like how hard working his kids are, his wife,” Crandall said. “He’s a family guy.”

President Donald Trump speaks at the National Prayer Breakfast, Washington, D.C., Feb. 6, 2020 | Photo courtesy of the White House, St. George News

Biden’s campaign is also targeting Latter-day Saints in Arizona and elsewhere. A Latter-day Saints for Joe group was formed more than a year ago. In a virtual town hall for church members on Saturday, campaign surrogates tied Biden’s economic, health care and immigration agendas to church teachings on self reliance, family values and refuge.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints “prioritizes caring for the poor. It prioritizes strong families, a strong moral code, sacrifice,” said Eric Biggart, co-chair of LDS Democrats who lives in Salt Lake City. “To me, it’s hard to be a Republican and a member of the church at the same time.”

Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!