Progressives seeking a seat in the Senate are taking a decades-old page from their Republican counterparts, using faith as a political tool to build connections with voters.
Three progressive Democratic candidates running for the Senate, Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon, and Texas state Rep. James Talarico, share a penchant for bucking the Democratic establishment in their meteoric rise this midterm cycle.
They have also incorporated their religions and faiths into their campaigns and messaging to voters, showing shades of the “Moral Majority” coalition that formed during the late 1970s in the GOP when former President was running as Republicans sought to tie policy to Christianity.
Nixon, who scored a major upset against Alexander Vindman, a major figure during President first impeachment trial who was backed by the Democratic establishment in Washington, D.C., has become a prime target for the GOP because of her connection to the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
During a sermon last week at the Saint Paul AME Church of Jacksonville, Fla., Nixon, who will face Sen. Ashley Moody, R-Fla., in November, contended that her “radical” positions were akin to those of Jesus Christ.
“They are trying, y’all. They are trying ⦠to label me as this extremist, this radical. But, you know, Jesus was a radical,” Nixon said.
EL-SAYED MAKES JESUS COMPARISON WHEN PRESSED ON SOCIALIST VIEWS: ‘RADICAL IN HIS TIME, TOO’
“And Jesus fought for â I mean, he pushed for the same things that I’m fighting for today, right? Right now, we’re literally in a civil rights moment,” she continued. “Whether or not people wanna believe it or not, but we are.”
She joined the DSA in June, prompting immediate backlash from the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), the Senate GOPs campaign arm, which tied her to socialism, despite her denial that shes a Democratic socialist.
Nixon isnt the only one of the three to make the same comparison.
El-Sayed, during an appearance on the Progressive Christians Podcast that aired in May, similarly invoked Christ when asked about his policy positions. El-Sayed, who is Muslim and running in Michigans toss-up race against former Rep. Mike Rogers, was asked about the similarities between his faith and Christianity and why they were being targeted as radical.
“Well, you know, Jesus, peace and blessings be upon him, was considered radical in his time, too,” El-Sayed said.
“And there is a radical nature to being willing to stand forthright in a time of corruption, and I think it’s important for all of us to realize that popularity and zeitgeist don’t make truth. And we live in a time where people are trying to normalize corruption,” he continued.
Of the three, Talarico, who is running in the toss-up race against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton,</
