Reactionaries love running against secular liberals. It’s a huge advantage in many rural areas, and it permits them to assume an air of moral superiority, regardless of the merits of the individual candidate.
The midterms, however, have created a new challenge–running against left-wing Christian candidates. This drives the Republicans nuts. Their typical response is to accuse the blue team candidate of being insincere, or even a heretic. After all, isn’t it self-evident that Jesus loves guns, fossil fuels, and capital punishment and hates abortion, trans people, immigrants, and wealth redistribution?
Well, actually, no.