Americans believe Trump was ‘anointed by God’

Donald Trump was “anointed by God” to his position
as the United States president. This is the belief of a
growing number of American churchgoers, according
to a new report.
The new report, title ” Trump the Anointed?”, published
by Religion in Public, found belief that Trump was
anointed by God had increased to 49.5 percent, up
from 29.6 percent who believed this in 2019. The
survey polled white Protestants who attended church
at least once a week.
This year’s survey was conducted in March 2020, and
was compared to a similar survey that collected data
in May 2019. Led by researchers Paul A. Djupe of
Denison University and Ryan P. Burge of Eastern
Illinois University, the statistics compiled also showed
that there was a general strong belief among white
Protestants that all presidents are anointed by God.
This wider belief is held by regular and less active
white Protestant churchgoers.
Looking at white Protestants who rarely attend church,
the 2020 survey found that 11 percent believed God
anointed presidents. This was up significantly from
2019, when only 4.3 percent believed this statement.
Among white American Protestants who attended
church a few times a month, the recent survey found
31.2 percent believed that Donald Trump specifically
was anointed by God to be president. This again was a
sharp increase from 2019’s survey, when only 13.6
percent of this demographic believed this statement.
Djupe and Burge have said, “It is also clear that there
remains a gap in believing that all presidents are
anointed versus whether Trump was, though it is now
much smaller. In 2019, the gap was nearly 40% across
attendance categories, though by 2020 the gap was
closer to 15%. The religious significance of the
presidency is spreading.”
However, the belief in presidential anointments is not
only held by white Protestant worshippers. The survey
found that in a general sample in each level of
religious practice, there was a significant belief.
Among weekly churchgoers, 49.1 percent of those
categorized as “Other” Christians believed Donald
Trump was anointed, which is very much in line with
the 49.5 percent of white Protestants who believe this.
In addition, among Christians who attend church a few
times a month, 31.3 percent of the “Other” category
believed Trump was anointed, compared to 31.2
percent of white Protestants.
Djupe and Burge explained: “In the top two attendance
categories, the level of belief is effectively identical
between the two groups. This is a phenomenon that is
sweeping American religion.”