(The Center Square) – Ahead of voters heading to the polls on Tuesday, a movement that began in Texas is growing in North Carolina to encourage more evangelical Christian pastors and congregants to run for office.
Led by the American Renewal Project and its founder David Lane, a series of events have been held at churches throughout the Tar Heel State, the “North Carolina Nehemiah Pastor Summit.” The latest was held in Jacksonville Nov. 3 ahead of Election Day. The next event is in Charlotte on Dec. 1.
Lane has been involved in Christian political engagement for decades launching multiple initiatives in battleground states. The ARP launched its first event in Texas with former Gov. Rick Perry in 2005. Since then, it’s raised more than $20 million to educate and activate evangelical Christian voters, engaged with more than 120,000 pastors nationwide and contacted more than 23.5 million low- to mid-propensity evangelical voters.
ARP began its outreach in North Carolina in 2019 with then-North Carolina Lt. Governor Dan Forest, a Republican, and roughly 40 pastors and spiritual leaders. By January 2020, it held its first luncheon with 49 pastors in Jamestown. By October 2024, ARP had held its 42nd event, reaching several thousand. By the end of this year, the total will have surpassed 50.
The focus of the nonpartisan group is first and foremost spiritual, Lane told The Center Square in an exclusive interview. “The byproduct is political.”
Lane is encouraging evangelical Christian pastors to follow the example of the Old Testament prophet Nehemiah, who with the support of the fifth century Persian King Artaxerxes, rallied exiled Israelites to rebuild Jerusalem’s walls after the Babylonian exile. In addition to focusing on security of the city, Nehemiah also addressed socio-economic and political issues, including exploitation of the poor. He also inspired a spiritual renewal that led to a reorienting of community and political life, according to biblical and historic texts.
Centuries later, these lessons are applicable to the United States, Lane argues. He’s encouraging pastors to teach biblical values in the pulpit that resonate in the pews and transform the public square. This includes registering congregants to vote, engaging in civic life and running for office.
The Nehemiah Project’s goal is to rally pastors and congregants “to rebuild the moral and cultural walls of America,” he explains. This includes encouraging pastors to preach “the whole counsel of God” and encouraging 500 North Carolina pastors, spiritual leaders and congregants to run for elected office in 2026, 2028 and beyond.
“The fruit” of ARP’s vision in North Carolina “has been undeniable,” Lane told The Center Square. In 2021, 2,700 pastors and spiritual leaders attended 13 events statewide.
By 2022, 50 North Carolina pastors and church leaders ran for public office, including for city council, county commissioner, school board and state representative seats. Among them, 25 won their primaries; 10 were elected in the general election.
Since 2020, nearly 5,000 pastors and spiritual leaders have participated in ARP events in North Carolina representing more than 20 Protestant denominations as well as Roman Catholics, he said.
Over the next two years, ARP plans to hold civic center events in each of North Carolina’s 14 congressional districts, with “one unchanging message,” Lane said. “Every church in America must have a pastor, elder, deacon, or congregant running for local office in 2026, 2028 and 2030 – and beyond – with Christians registered and voting in every election.”
At different events ARP has held, President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and other elected officials have delivered prerecorded messages to attendees.
In Trump’s message, he says ARP’s efforts have “inspired dozens of faith leaders to run for office and win elections and they’ve been winning them in droves. I will be cheering you on as you recruit 500 church members to run for office in 2026 and 2028.”
Lane has long encouraged Christians in America to vote, pointing to statistics that show many stay home on Election Day. “If we stay home, candidates who oppose biblical values will win and then draft and pass legislation to codify into law their values,” Lane said. “We’re asking the living God to move into the public square of America.”
While winning elections is important, Lane argues, the goal is bigger.
“We all know that politicians are not going to save America, or that Wall Street or even our powerful military will,” Lane said. “If America is to be saved, Biblical values must reign supreme. They must be returned to the public square.”
Harkening to the founding fathers ahead of the 250th anniversary of the United States next year, Lane said, “The founders did not retreat from involvement in society and politics. They did not surrender the ministry of civil government to those who are in rebellion against God. The cornerstone of political freedom in the United States is rooted in the Bible, which shaped the state constitutions and charters of the first 13 colonies. Our goal is to restore America to our Judeo-Christian heritage and reestablish a biblically based culture.”
