Which evangelical leaders publicly endorsed Biden in 2020 and why?
Executive summary
A notably large cohort of evangelical and other Christian leaders publicly endorsed Joe Biden in 2020—groups ranging from “Pro‑life Evangelicals for Biden” to multi‑faith coalitions organized by Vote Common Good and Faith 2020—claiming Biden’s platform better aligned with what they described as a biblically informed “ethic of life” and the common good [1] [2] [3]. Their reasons clustered around objections to Donald Trump’s rhetoric and conduct, and policy priorities such as poverty, health care, racial justice and climate that these leaders said made Biden the more moral choice [4] [5] [1].
1. Which evangelical leaders publicly endorsed Biden: notable names and group totals
Reporting catalogued dozens of recognizable evangelical figures and hundreds—indeed more than 1,600 faith leaders in some compilations—who signed endorsements for Biden, with lists assembled by Vote Common Good and Faith 2020 as well as issue‑specific coalitions [6] [1] [3]. Names singled out repeatedly include Ronald Sider, president emeritus of Evangelicals for Social Action [4] [1]; Jerushah (Jerushah/Jerusha) Duford, Billy Graham’s granddaughter and a co‑signer in pro‑Biden evangelical statements [6] [2]; Joel Hunter, former megachurch pastor who joined new evangelical Biden supporters [7] [2]; Richard Mouw and Richard Foster among organizers of the “Pro‑life Evangelicals for Biden” statement [2]; and first‑time endorsers listed by Faith 2020 and Faith 2020’s Medium post such as John Phelan and Rev. David Beckmann [3] [8]. Other public endorsers cited in coverage included Rev. Fred Davie as an organizer and Rob Schenck among higher‑profile defections from GOP allegiance [5] [9].
2. Why these leaders said they backed Biden: policy framing and moral arguments
Those endorsing Biden advanced two overlapping rationales: policy alignment on “life” beyond abortion, and a moral repudiation of Trump’s character and governance. Pro‑life evangelicals for Biden argued that poverty, racism, lack of health care and climate change are all “pro‑life” issues and that Biden’s agenda better reflected a biblically shaped ethic of life than Trump’s policies [4] [2]. Organizers and signers also framed their support as a bid for “moral leadership” and the common good—Fred Davie and Vote Common Good emphasized a need for leaders who prioritize inclusion and public virtue [5] [1]. In parallel, several endorsers said they were driven by revulsion at Trump’s rhetoric, perceived cruelty, and ethics controversies—claims reported as motivating some evangelicals to break with 2016 behavior [4] [10].
3. Who organized, and what agendas shaped the endorsements
The endorsements were not random: they were shepherded by identifiable advocacy efforts with distinct aims. Vote Common Good compiled a list totaling more than 1,600 faith leaders and framed the effort as the largest modern clergy endorsement of a Democratic presidential candidate [6] [1]. Faith 2020 and its companion lists organized multi‑faith coalitions and targeted religious persuasion in swing states [3] [8]. The “Pro‑life Evangelicals for Biden” statement—promoted by figures like Richard Mouw and Ron Sider—explicitly sought to reframe “pro‑life” priorities to include social and environmental policies, creating space for evangelicals with pro‑life identities to endorse Biden despite disagreement on abortion [2] [4].
4. Internal evangelical debate, dissent and limitations of the reporting
Coverage makes clear that these endorsements did not speak for all evangelicals: white evangelical voters remained a strong base for Trump even as some leaders defected, and outlets noted both the symbolic weight of prominent defections and the limited electoral shift among rank‑and‑file white evangelicals [11] [12] [13]. Some endorsers had never previously supported a Democratic ticket, highlighting an intra‑movement split [5] [2]. Reporting enumerates many signers and organizers but does not provide a definitive roster of every evangelical endorser or fully quantify the endorsements’ effect on voters; those analytical gaps remain in the sources [1] [3].
Conclusion: the 2020 evangelical endorsements for Biden were a coordinated, public phenomenon driven by a mix of policy reframing—especially around broad “pro‑life” concerns—and moral condemnation of Trump, organized by groups such as Vote Common Good, Faith 2020 and Pro‑life Evangelicals for Biden; the signers included long‑standing evangelical figures (Sider, Mouw, Hunter, Duford among them) and many first‑time political endorsers, even as significant evangelical constituencies stayed with Trump [6] [2] [3] [4] [11].