Texas Pastors Launch Evangelical Get-Out-The-Vote Campaign

There are 80 million possible evangelical voters in America but only 26 percent voted in the 2008 and 2012 Elections, according to pastors citing the U.S. Census Bureau.

The executive director of a national, state, and local pastor council said, “Voting is not a right, it is a duty, and Christians must do it faithfully in every election. Period. The Pastor Council has launched a campaign to get voters to the polls.

The executive director of the Texas Pastor Council (TXPC), Pastor Dave Welch told Breitbart Texas, “The reason you vote has nothing to do with the candidates, the issues, or even personal motivations. It is not an option to not vote in every race, but a God-given duty to vote for the best leaders possible.”

He said, “Our theme this year of ‘This Church Votes‘ is based on the principle that all authority comes from God, and that our vote in choosing leaders to govern is our act of delegating His authority.”

Welch added, “Self-governing in a Constitutional Republic requires that we will always choose from among flawed, imperfect people to serve in pubic office, and the tension comes in because we also have a duty to live by, revere and honor the laws of God as our standard. We must choose the candidate who is the closest to that standard in every race, while always working diligently to raise up and run the most godly, principled and experienced leaders we can.”

The Council is part of the USPC, US Pastor’s Council, and the Houston Area Pastor Council (HAPC). According to the USPC website, the HAPC was founded in 2003 by 13 senior pastors of various denominations and races. The grassroots organization has grown to over 200 senior pastors in the greater Houston area and it has helped pastors in other cities to develop Pastor Councils, including in Austin, Beaumont, Sacramento, Virginia Beach and other cities around the country.

The Texas Pastor Council has begun Phase One of the campaign and are encouraging churches of every denomination to register all eligible voters in their congregation in September.

The TXPC is suggesting to pastors that they utilize the following to encourage voter registration during this election cycle:

• Include announcements from the pulpit, in church bulletins, on projection screens and websites to enhance awareness of the upcoming election. Place special emphasis on the convenience of early voting.
• Set up a voter awareness table in the foyer of your church to provide eligibility requirements, voter registration applications, voter guides and voting locations. Voter registration forms can be acquired from the local (tax assessor/collector) or state (Secretary of State) election office in sufficient quantity based on church membership size or attendance. A list of Texas counties can be found here.
• Enlist two or three members of your congregation to attend training to become a Voluntary Deputy Voter Registrar (VDVR). These individuals are allowed to register voters in your church in its designated county. Information for these training seminars can be found at your local county voter registrar website. Training sessions usually last one hour.
• Preach a sermon on the “ministry of voting.” Resources for sermon material can be found here.

The email blast from the USPC and TXPC to pastors and others concludes, “Whether voting for local city officials or for the President of the United States, the goal of Christians should be to vote biblically in every municipal, special, primary and General election without fail. We should always remember that our objective is to choose the candidate and/or political party closest to the Biblical standard of priority issues based on a prayerful, informed study of available information about the candidate. Remember, every candidate is ‘flawed’ and the ‘perfect’ candidate does not exist. To NOT vote IS a vote not to fulfill the stewardship granted to us by our heavenly Father.”

Lana Shadwick is a contributing writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served as a prosecutor and associate judge in Texas. Follow her on Twitter @LanaShadwick2.