ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the impact of Pat Robertson on the GOP, focusing on both the 1988 George Bush-Robertson split and on recent activities of Robertson’s Christian Coalition. An examination of Bush and Robertson delegates to 1988 GOP conventions in three states reveals marked differences between the two groups with respect to demographic characteristics, issue positions, level of political activity, and partisan attachment. The Christian Coalition was exceedingly active in local, state, and national campaigns during the critical election year, 1992. Christian Coalition supporters and other members of the Christian Right also played a prominent role in the presidential election, most notably at the 1992 Republican national convention. Bush-Quayle campaign officials estimated that more than 40 percent of all the delegates to the Convention were evangelical Christians. The goals of the Coalition’s state and local efforts in 1992 were exceedingly diverse, ranging from electing school board members to influencing the fate of statewide propositions.
