ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the Jackson and Robertson campaigns in one state, South Carolina, and analyzes nature of their support at the parties' state conventions in 1988. Both of the winning candidates, George Bush and Michael Dukakis, found that they had to accommodate at least some specific concerns of the losing preachers in their platforms and campaign strategies. The connections between religion and politics have long intrigued students of the American political system. Presidential nomination contests during the 1980s also blurred the lines between the religious and political spheres. During the presidential nomination process, South Carolina was crucial to several candidacies, especially among the Republicans. For political activists, the strength of party attachment is normally an important indicator of intensity of party activity and commitment to future activity. Pat Robertson's supporters were largely newcomers to party activity, inspired to become active by the close fit between their moral concerns and Robertson's campaign agenda.
