2022 election and the intersection of religious identity and Brazilian political identity

Abstract

This article aim sto examine the intersections between Evangelical religious identity and Bolsonarist political and ideological identity in light of the events that have taken place during the Bolsonaro government and, mainly, during the 2022 elections. The hypothesis examined here is that, through the political leadership of Bolsonarism and some evangelical leaders, there has been an attempt to transform Evangelical identity into Bolsonarist ideological identity. We identify this attempt through the communication of Jair Bolsonaro's campaign, as well as through the speeches of religious leaders that were inserted into the logic of what has been called "spiritual warfare" and "demonization of the adversary." Additionally, we argue that the electoral campaign with in the2 churches took on a religious logic in 2022. However, we identify that this attempt, despite yielding electoral results, did not make Evangelical identity also become Bolsonarist ideological identity.