Trump and Harris Step Up Efforts to Woo Mormon Voters

The recent moves reflect how members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are no longer locked in for Republicans. Their votes could matter in key battlegrounds.

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Evan McMullin, a Mormon and a onetime independent presidential candidate, has said the November election is about “defending American democracy” from former President Donald J. Trump.

Both presidential campaigns have stepped up efforts to court an unlikely group of potential swing voters: Mormons.

Reliable Republicans for decades, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have hardly been viewed as up for grabs. But the church is changing, and now both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald J. Trump are battling for a group that could play a role in determining who wins the key battlegrounds of Arizona and Nevada.

On Thursday night, Ms. Harris’s campaign held a Zoom call with prominent Latter-day Saints, including Evan McMullin, the one-time independent presidential candidate, to motivate members of the church and reach those who might be on the fence about backing Mr. Trump. The call was held a week after the campaign launched an advisory committee in Arizona with the same goals.

Earlier this week, Mr. Trump met with members of the church at Mar-a-Lago to shore up his own support among them, his campaign said.

“It’s interesting how things are heating up — they’re treating it like we matter, because we do,” said Rob Taber, a member of the church who leads the Harris campaign’s efforts. “We are a swing demographic.”

Although many Mormon voters questioned Mr. Trump’s character and detested his mockery of women and immigrants, most initially stuck with him in 2016. In 2020, a portion — 18 percent in Arizona — backed President Biden, helping flip the state blue. This year, Democrats believe that an even greater number, perhaps disgusted by Mr. Trump’s efforts to subvert the 2020 election and by his felony convictions, could turn their backs on the Republican Party.

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