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Abstract
Religious belief is playing a significant role in this year’s presidential campaign. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s rhetoric and anti-immigrant positions have split the traditionally conservative evangelical Christian community, with some evangelical leaders embracing Trump, a businessman and reality TV star turned politician, and others rejecting him. Conservative Christians also continue to fight same-sex marriage as well as contraception covered under the Affordable Care Act, both backed by Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Within the Catholic Church, Pope Francis’ emphasis on social and economic justice is refocusing the church’s attention on those issues but stirring resistance among Catholic traditionalists.