Michael Sean Covey
Blog 5
Although
American Latter-day Saints come from a variety of states, backgrounds, and
ethnicities, they have a strong, conservative, Republican, political identity. What
it is that causes this distinct political identity? I assert that there is one
main factor: a deep-rooted LDS culture of self-sufficiency and independency
from the government. While the primordialist argument does a better job of
explaining this identity, the constructivist argument also plays a role.
Numerous polls and studies have
shown that Mormons are overwhelmingly conservative and Republican. A Gallup
Poll revealed that 60% of Mormons in Utah are conservative, 31% are moderate, and
only 7% are liberal (Gallup). Some may argue that it is just “Utah Mormons”
that are strongly conservative, and that this political identity is not found
among Latter-day Saints in other states. However, data proves the exact
opposite. The same Gallup Poll showed that Latter-day Saints, in different
states other than Utah, are 58% conservative, 31% moderate, and 9% liberal. These
numbers are almost identical to the numbers inside of Utah! Mormons are
consistently conservative, regardless of what state they live in. It is not
just a “Utah thing”—it’s a Mormon thing. Further data proves just how unique
Mormons are. The Gallup Poll revealed that only 46% of Protestants are
conservative, 39% of Catholics, 23% of Muslims, and 20% of Jewish. Compare any
of those numbers to the 58% of Mormons. Gallup concluded, “Mormons are both the
most Republican and the most conservative of any of the major religious groups
in the U.S. today” (Gallup). The data proves that Latter-day Saints have a
uniquely conservative political identity.
One of the main causes of this
conservative LDS identity is a deeply rooted church culture of self-sufficiency
and independency from the government. For years LDS Church leaders have
regularly taught the importance of becoming self-reliant. Spencer W. Kimball
summed it up when he said, “The responsibility of each person’s social,
emotional, spiritual, physical, or economic well-being rests first upon
himself, second upon his family, and third upon the Church is he is a faithful
member thereof. No true Latter-day Saint, while physically or emotionally able,
will voluntarily shift the burden of his own or his family’s well-being to
someone else” (Monson). Notice that President Kimball did not say anything
about the federal government. When Latter-day Saints are struggling to provide,
they first turn to their families, and then to church welfare for help. The
government is probably third on the list. There is nothing wrong with receiving
help from the government; I’m simply pointing out that Latter-day Saints have a
unique support system in the church that oftentimes replaces the need for governmental help. This leads many Latter-day
Saints to support a smaller, limited, and less involved federal government,
which is one of the main tenets of the Republican Party. On the contrary, non-members,
who do not have a church welfare system, more quickly go to the government for
help, and therefore would be more inclined to favor a bigger and more involved
federal government. This unique church culture is a main cause of the LDS
political identity.
The primordialist argument does a decent
job of explaining the cause of this political identity. Its premise is that
political identities are innate and largely unchanging (Samuels p. 153). In other
words, if you’re born into a Mormon family and community, you will become a conservative,
not by your own choice, but unconsciously from the context you came from. Remember
from the Gallup Poll that about 6 out of 10 Mormons are conservative, and only
1 out of 10 are liberal. If you grow up in a community that does not favor a
massive federal government, and votes conservative, this is what you will be
conditioned to. This primordialist argument works a lot of the time, but it
fails to explain the church members who choose
to be liberal, or those who join the church in their adulthood and consciously change their political
identity. For example, my cousin’s father, Mike, grew up in a
liberal-Democratic household and continued with that political identity for
much of his early adulthood. After joining the LDS church, however, he started
to become more conservative, to despise big government, and feel like he
aligned more closely with the Republican Party. His political identity was molded and changed through his own
conscious decisions. This example would support the constructivist argument,
which says that individuals have some choice
over their political identities (Samuels p. 157).
In conclusion, Mormons are the most
conservative and Republican group in the United States. They have a uniquely
strong, conservative, political identity. One of the main causes of this is a
deeply-rooted church culture of independency from the federal government, which
leads many Mormons to vote conservative. The primordialist argument explains
much of this political identity, but the constructivist argument also plays an
important role.
Works Cited
Gallup Poll. “Mormons
Most Conservative Major Religious Group in U.S.” 2009.
Religious-Group.aspx
Monson, Thomas
S. “Guiding Principles of Personal and Family Welfare.” Ensign.
welfare?lang=eng&query=self+sufficiency
Samuels, David
J. Comparative Politics. Pearson
Education: 2013.
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