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Jerry Falwell, chancellor of Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, and co-founder of the Moral Majority, wouldn't predict demands for political payback from the Bush administration. He did say complacency is not an option.

"I know after eight years of Ronald Reagan that many seemed to become apathetic and fell asleep; I don't think that's happening now," he told Religion News Service. "I just do not think for a moment anybody … from our camp [is] going to rush the president and say, `We did this. Now you do that.' It just doesn't work that way."

Carrie Gordon Earll, a spokeswoman for Focus on the Family, based in Colorado Springs, said the gay marriage issue renewed energy that had dissipated in the evangelical movement. Evangelicals are now determined to work for passage of the marriage amendment and election of "a true conservative" as the next justice to the U.S. Supreme Court, she said.

"This is a spike in the chart of evangelical passion and involvement," she said.

Michael Cromartie, director of the Evangelicals in Civic Life project at the Washington-based Ethics and Public Policy Center, said evangelicals may not win every political battle ahead, but there is no question they will loom large in the Republican Party for years to come.

"They're not taking over the party," he said, "but they are major players in the party. They're major players at the table of Republican discourse."

Itir Yakar and Wangui Njuguna contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2004 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Other Christianity Today articles on Election 2004 include:

Weblog: 'Moral Values' Carry Bush to Victory | Moral issues bigger priority for voters than economy, terrorism, or war in Iraq. Nearly a quarter of voters identify themselves as "evangelical/born-again." (Nov. 03, 2004)

Weblog Bonus: 'Bush Gets Mandate for Theocracy' | Early online punditry: Religious conservatives are in control of the country (Nov. 03, 2004)

Religious Leaders Frustrated that Poverty Goes Unnoticed in Election | "The least of these" are the least discussed this campaign season. (Nov. 01, 2004)

The Values-Driven Voter | The values bandwagon is being pulled apart. Which way is more scriptural?—A Christianity Today editorial (August 27, 2004)

A Question of Faith | Top Democrats have much work ahead to convince voters of their religious sincerity.—A Christianity Today editorial (March 03, 2004)

The Politics of Communion | Church leaders who admonish politicians on moral issues are doing their jobs. —A Christianity Today editorial (May 26, 2004)

Bush Calls for 'Culture Change' | In interview, President says new era of responsibility should replace 'feel-good.' (May 28, 2004)

Weblog: John Kerry—Bush and I Have the 'Same Position' on Gay Marriage | Kerry characterized the difference between him and the President as a matter of energizing religious voters. (Oct. 08, 2004)

Wooing the Faithful | President Bush needs evangelicals more than ever, but it's unclear how badly they want him for another four years. (Sept. 28, 2004)

John Kerry's Open Mind | The candidate has roots in liberal Catholicism, establishment Protestantism, and secular idealism. (Sept. 27, 2004)

Not Far from the Brahmin Tree | Kerry's morals have been shaped by an old Protestant establishment. (Sept. 27, 2004)

Weblog: RNC Tells Voters that Liberals Will Ban Bible | West Virginia voters have received a mailing, apparently from the Republican National Committee, warning that liberals will ban the Bible if they're elected in November. (Sept. 20, 2004)

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November (Web-only) 2004, Vol. 48