Elise Stefanik is being underrated as a Trump VP pick
![Elise Stefanik is being underrated as a Trump VP pick](https://thehill.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/06/GettyImages-2151026343-e1719784915678.jpg?w=900)
As the national conversation around Trump’s vice-presidential pick intensifies, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) stands out as the only woman left on the reported shortlist. A pro-Israel, anti-abortion congresswoman representing New York’s 21st district, Stefanik is also a Catholic.
Trump picking a Christian woman for his running mate might seem contradictory. After all, he was recently convicted for covering up paying hush money to a porn actress.
But I’ve been tracking right-wing Christian women since 2016, and Stefanik making the VP shortlist comes as no surprise. Stefanik is a manifestation of Christian women’s continued support for Trump and shows that, after being dismissed for years, the group is finally being recognized as a potent political force.
White Christian women have been allied with the GOP for decades, and their support for Trump has remained strong for the past eight years. Over 90 percent of white Christian women voted for him in 2016 and a similar percentage did in 2020.
My research shows that more Christian women have become politically active since 2020 — a confluence of the pandemic, the Black Lives Matter protests and Joe Biden’s presidential victory, which many saw as rigged. In different ways, these three events caused Christian women to feel under attack and at the mercy of an unfair ruling elite. As a result, these women have become more politically active, and there is no going back.
If Trump wants to win in November, he will need to rally this newly engaged population and not underestimate them. Picking Stefanik as his running mate would do just that.
Christian women — including Catholics and evangelicals — have buoyed right-wing candidates and issues at other key junctures in history. In the 1970s, conservative Christian women such as Phyllis Schlafly, who started the Eagle Forum, and Beverly LaHaye, who spearheaded Concerned Women for America, entered the political fray. Those two organizations waged battle against the Equal Rights Amendment, which they claimed would advance feminism and abortion in America. They rallied white suburban women across the country, who sent checks in the mail and summoned their friends, neighbors and Bible study groups to get involved in conservative politics.
Through Eagle Forum and Concerned Women for America, Christian women eventually helped defeat the Equal Rights Amendment. In the 1980s, Christian women helped elect Ronald Reagan to the presidency via grassroots campaigns, door-to-door canvassing and national women’s conferences.
What’s different now is that Christian women have more scope to be involved in public affairs than ever before. In the past, they prioritized the family, limiting their engagement with politics to what they could do while at home with their kids. Today, right-wing Christian women like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Kristi Noem hold political office, while others lead major legal organizations and conservative think tanks.
Their influence on American politics has already been clearly demonstrated. Amy Coney Barrett, a Catholic woman with seven kids and a law degree from Notre Dame, was appointed by Trump to the Supreme Court in 2020, making her a role model for younger Christian women aspiring to a career in public life. In 2022, another icon, Kristin Waggoner, led the legal fight in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade.
But let’s be clear — even though they occupy positions of power, these women are not feminists. A traditional gender hierarchy, which places men as the ultimate authorities and upholds traditional femininity, including motherhood, remains their status quo. In this way, even when Christian women may borrow some parts of feminism, such as promoting gender parity in politics, their core ideology still rejects it.
From Christian social media influencers, to college-aged idealists and Black activists of the Blexit movement, to the mama bears marching on state capitols and the white suburbanites whom Trump and Biden are fighting over, Christian women are influencing American politics from the ground up.
Despite their differences, they share a common vision: limiting abortion access, restricting immigration and maintaining traditional ideas about gender identity. And Trump’s campaign platform is tailor-made to speak to these interests.
“Momentum is moving in our direction,” Stefanik declared recently on Fox News. And if the past four years of strategic and relentless political organizing pays off, right-wing Christian women will ensure the momentum carries straight through to Trump’s reelection.
Katie Gaddini is a visiting research fellow at Stanford University and associate professor of sociology at University College London. Her next book is about Christian women and conservative politics from 1970 to present.
Date: | |
Tag: | Donald Trump |
Filter
-
CBS News - Top stories
Why Trump's "hush money" sentencing is being delayed over immunity ruling
Donald Trump's sentencing for the conviction in his New York "hush money" trial is being postponed until September after his lawyers moved to toss the guilty verdict because of the Supreme Court's presidential immunity ruling. Attorney and CBS ...Donald Trump -
Yahoo Sports - Sports
Emma Raducanu delights Wimbledon crowd with dazzling win over Elise Mertens
Emma Raducanu brushed aside Elise Mertens at Wimbledon to reach the third round of a grand slam for the first time since her US Open triumph. -
The New York Times - Sports
How Soccer Is Being Used to Influence the U.K. Election
The leaders of the two biggest political parties are tapping into the sport’s reach to target voters ahead of polling day on July 4.United Kingdom -
ABC News - Top stories
12-year-old missing after being attacked and taken by crocodile: Report
Police in Australia have launched a search for a missing 12-year-old after reports that they were attacked and taken by a crocodile while swimming in a creek. -
Yahoo Sports - Sports
Five first-round picks remain unsigned, including Caleb Williams
With little room for haggling, all deals should be done by now. -
ESPN - Sports
From pick 42 to soon-to-be All Star: The rise of Gunnar Henderson
An AL MVP favorite, Henderson might be the best player from a stacked 2019 MLB draft. So how did 29 teams pass on him? Tune in to the MLB All-Star starters reveal at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN. -
Yahoo News - World
12-Year-Old Girl Missing After Being Attacked by Crocodile While Swimming in Creek: Reports
-
MarketWatch - Business
Betting markets give Harris better chance of being Democratic nominee than Biden
Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday moved ahead of President Joe Biden in some betting markets as to who would be the candidate to take on former President Donald Trump in the presidential election.Joe Biden -
GameSpot - Tech
10+ Years After Being Announced, The Watch Dogs Movie Is Actually Happening, For Real
More than a decade after the Watch Dogs movie was originally announced, cameras have finally begun rolling. The film was announced in 2013, but stalled multiple times. However, it's now back on and production has officially begun.. Tom Blyth, who ... -
CBS Sports - Sports
2024 John Deere Classic odds, picks, field: Surprising predictions from golf model that's called 13 majors
SportsLine's proven model simulated the John Deere Classic 2024 10,000 times and revealed its surprising PGA Tour golf picks
More from The Hill
-
The Hill - Politics
More states on track to have abortion measures on ballot
Click in for more news from The Hill {beacon} Health Care Health Care The Big Story More states on track to have abortion measures on ballot Ballot measures in Arizona and Nebraska ensuring abortion access advanced closer to a vote, with groups ...Abortion -
The Hill - Politics
Fauci says he has 'no doubt' Biden is capable of continuing as president
Former White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci said in a new interview he has “no doubt” President Biden is mentally capable of serving as president, amid growing concern among Democrats about the president’s standing as the party’s ...Joe Biden -
The Hill - Politics
Congress fights nonconsensual deepfakes
Welcome to The Hill's Technology newsletter {beacon} View Online Technology Technology The Big Story Congress to combat nonconsensual AI porn Political momentum is building to regulate the spread of nonconsensual explicit deepfakes as the ... -
The Hill - Politics
White House seeks to stop the bleeding amid new calls for Biden drop-out
The White House and Biden campaign sought to stop the bleeding on Wednesday, forcefully saying the president will not be dropping out of the race after a disastrous debate underscored concerns about his age and ability to serve. Allies and staff ...Joe Biden -
The Hill - Politics
Federal judge issues narrow pause on FTC noncompete ban
A federal judge on Wednesday granted a preliminary injunction on a nationwide ban on noncompete agreements issued this spring, calling into question its future in the face of opposition by prominent business groups. The Dallas-based tax firm Ryan ...