Doug Pagitt is a liberal evangelical Christian pastor, author, and religious activist. The founder of several left-leaning organizations, including a non-denominational church and the anti-Trump voter engagement group Vote Common Good, he is widely cited by mainstream media outlets as an alternative voice to evangelicals who supported President Donald Trump’s policy agenda and unsuccessful re-election campaign. ^{1 2 3}

Beliefs

Pagitt’s political and religious beliefs are consistently left-leaning. He wrote in 2018 that making abortion illegal would not reduce the numbers of abortions. Pagitt also opposed the Trump administration and Congressional Republicans’ attempts to repeal Obamacare and its family separation immigration policies, and claimed that making abortion illegal harms mothers. ⁴

Pagitt also condemned a seminary for expelling a student who was in a same-sex marriage, saying the seminary was justifying “intolerance” and “prejudice.” ⁵

Pagitt said in 2008 that younger, liberal evangelicals were concerned that the nomination of then-Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) to be Vice President would mean too much political focus on abortion. ⁶

Pagitt founded Solomon’s Porch as a non-denominational church in 2000. The church is dedicated to liberal Christian values and expresses its fellowship through art and other diverse forms of worship. ⁷

Greater Things Foundation

Founded by Pagitt, Greater Things Foundation is a religious activist and media group that asserts that many of America’s alleged ills related to gender, race, and economic opportunity are due to white supremacy. The organization’s partnerships with various organizations allow it to run a 24/7 station dedicated to liberal Christianity as well as provide coaching and training up to college-level courses. ⁸

One of the foundation’s partners is the liberal evangelical think tank Progressive Evangelical Institute. The institute calls “national leaders and organizations in America” to “awaken to the moment – especially those from Progressive Evangelical settings who do not identify with the Religious Right, and who are not content with narratives of exclusion, violence and ultraconservative imagination of society.” ⁹

Vote Common Good

Founded in 2018 by Pagitt, Vote Common Good is a voting education and advocacy organization with a mission to inspire liberal evangelicals to oppose the agenda of then-President Donald Trump. ¹⁰ The group describes itself as non-partisan, but in a statement released about the 2020 March for Life, Pagitt said that March organizers are closed-minded and trying to trick religious voters into believing that the pro-life position is the only one for religious-minded people. ¹¹

Vote Common Good aimed to convince five to 15 percent of American Christians to support liberal causes and candidates, and to provide a left-of-center religious voice in the media and the public square. The group frequently claims that right-of-center religious voters are self-interested, and that voting for its positions are in line with common good. ¹²

Pagitt and others in Vote Common Good’s leadership say that Democrats are overlooking a significant number of votes by being hostile to religion. ¹³ The group trains candidates for political office to reach religious voters, and claims that the Republican Party is “held hostage by religious extremism.” ¹⁴

2020 U.S. Presidential Elections

In a 2020 opinion piece for Vote Common Good, Pagitt described his efforts to oppose the reelection of then-President Donald Trump as furthering “a critical drop in support from white evangelicals” for Trump’s re-election campaign. Pagitt’s organizations paid for “tens of thousands of dollars” in anti-Trump billboards and conducted a bus tour across Michigan promoting Democratic sentiments and persuading evangelical voters, “particularly evangelical women,” against voting for Trump. ¹⁵

Personal Life

Pagitt is married with four children. He holds a Masters of Theology from Bethel Seminary, and a bachelor’s degree in anthropology. He is also a longtime Minnesota resident, which is where his non-denominational church Solomon’s Porch is located. ¹⁶

Pagitt has authored 10 books on religion and public life, all from a liberal perspective. ^{17 18}

1. Bio.” Doug Pagitt. Accessed May 2, 2022. http://dougpagitt.com/bio
2. Pagitt, Doug. “Evangelicals are paying high moral price for anti-abortion gains. What would Jesus do?” USA Today. October 21, 2018.  Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/10/21/donald-trump-abortion-cost-evangelicals-moral-high-ground-column/1686348002/
3. Mealer, Bryan. “‘I’m not anti-Trump, I’m just pro-Jesus’: The Evangelicals stumping for the Democrats.” The Guardian. October 31, 2018. Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.theguardian.com/global/2018/oct/31/trump-democrats-evangelicals-pro-jesus-republicans
4. Pagitt, Doug. “Evangelicals are paying high moral price for anti-abortion gains. What would Jesus do?” USA Today. October 21, 2018.  Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/10/21/donald-trump-abortion-cost-evangelicals-moral-high-ground-column/1686348002/
5. ^[1] Pagitt, Doug. “How a Christian college hurt itself by expelling a married gay student.” Los Angeles Times. November 27, 2019.  Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2019-11-27/fuller-seminary-expelled-student
6. Gorski, Eric. “Younger Evangelicals split over Palin choice as VP.” Associated Press. September 14, 2008. Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_wires/2008Sep14/0,4675,RELPalinYoungEvangelicals,00.html
7. Solomon’s Porch. Accessed May 3, 2022. https://www.solomonsporch.com/
8. Greater Things Foundation. Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.greaterthingsfoundation.org/
9. Greater Things Foundation. “The Progressive Evangelical Institute.” Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.greaterthingsfoundation.org/progressive-evangelical-institute
10. Vote Common Good. Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.votecommongood.com/
11. Pagitt, Doug. “March for Life Statement.” Vote Common Good. January 24, 2020. Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.votecommongood.com/march-for-life-statement/
12. Vote Common Good. “What & Why.” Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.votecommongood.com/what-and-why/
13. Mealer, Bryan. “‘I’m not anti-Trump, I’m just pro-Jesus’: The Evangelicals stumping for the Democrats.” The Guardian. October 31, 2018. Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.theguardian.com/global/2018/oct/31/trump-democrats-evangelicals-pro-jesus-republicans
14. Vote Common Good. “What & Why.” Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.votecommongood.com/what-and-why/
15. Pagitt, Doug. “Morning Consult–Why Evangelicals Swung Michigan for Biden and Made the Difference in 2020.” Vote Common Good. November 23, 2020. Accessed May 4, 2022. https://www.votecommongood.com/morning-consult-why-evangelicals-swung-michigan-for-biden-and-made-the-difference-in-2020/
16. “Bio.” Doug Pagitt. Accessed May 2, 2022.http://dougpagitt.com/bio
17. “Bio.” Doug Pagitt. Accessed May 2, 2022. http://dougpagitt.com/bio
18. Amazon.com. Doug Pagitt. Accessed May 2, 2022. https://www.amazon.com/Doug-Pagitt/e/B001ILKDC0/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1