Christian nationalism: a stained-glass ceiling for LGBT candidates?

ABSTRACT Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) candidates for public office generally perform better among traditional Democratic voters including women, progressives, young people, People of Color (POC), and the non-religious. Yet, LGBT candidates represent only a fraction of elected officials even in “liberal” states such as California. Using data from a representative sample of California voters, I examine the relationship between Christian nationalism and support for LGBT political candidates. I hypothesize Christian nationalism consolidates hetero- and cisnormative boundaries around American identity which exclude LGBT people and extend across groups who are traditionally supportive of LGBT rights. While the research design cannot demonstrate causation, I find adherence to Christian nationalism is associated with opposition to both lesbian/gay and transgender candidates. Furthermore, the negative effects of Christian nationalism are invariant across measures of partisanship, race, and religious affiliation. Other variables including gender identity, education, and age also predict support for LGBT candidates, but the results suggest Christian nationalism likely represents a stained-glass ceiling for candidates among potential constituents, even constituents from traditionally supportive groups.