DeSantis, Trump court Iowa's evangelical voters, promising Christian-focused policy

In November, Republican presidential candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis netted what seemed to be a key evangelical endorsement in the run-up to the Iowa caucuses — now just less than three weeks away.

Bob Vander Plaats, president of the FAMiLY Leader organization and a major evangelical figure in the Hawkeye State, endorsed the governor in an interview on Fox News, calling DeSantis a «bold and courageous leader.»

Whether or not Vander Plaats' endorsement makes a significant difference for DeSantis, it ties into a constant theme on the campaign trail: DeSantis, former President Donald Trump, and other candidates have been trying to court evangelical voters throughout their campaigns.

Employing religious rhetoric on the campaign trail is not a new phenomenon.

What's novel about how Christianity is being discussed this election cycle, some political scientists told ABC News, is how candidates talk about policy and «culture war» ideas to appeal to Christian and evangelical voters — a critical voting bloc in Iowa and elsewhere in the country.

Specifically, some candidates focus on pushing back against what the candidates say is a growing anti-Christian sentiment and hostility toward religion and religious views.

Some political observers and religious freedom advocates expressed concern that the candidates' religious language, such as how they will be fighters and warriors for Christians, can also appeal to those who espouse Christian nationalism, which favors Christianity over other religions, conflates being Christian with being American and is often linked to diverse attitudes on race.

Such language is exclusionary and has potential policy implications for governance, they say.

But some conservatives dismiss these concerns — with