Liberty Counsel provides the following chart and article regarding what pastors and churches can do politically.
For a comprehensive listing of information on this subject, we highly recommend the Wallbuilders site: www.wallbuilders.com. From their opening page, scroll down and click 'Election Resources and Information'. On this page, scroll down again to 'Churches and Elections'.
PASTORS and CHURCHES CAN DO A LOT PRIOR TO ELECTION DAY
Legal experts say that church leaders have wide latitude
Let us earnestly pray that godly pro-life and pro-marriage candidates be selected, supported, protected and find favor with the voters.
On Tuesday, November 7, U.S. voters will elect an entire House of Representatives, one third of the Senate, many Governors, and scores of local and state officials. They will also cast votes on referenda of historic importance, such as same-sex marriage, etc.
Many pastors, churches and nonprofit groups may be wondering about the legal limits of their involvement in the political process. Legal experts state that pastors and churches have wide latitude in terms of their involvement. Pastors are free to talk about key issues of the day, urge people to vote with a biblical worldview, and may encourage them to be involved in the political process. The only area of involvement that is specifically prohibited is that of advocating for or against specific candidates.
In addition, in order to dispel fear from many groups' efforts to "gag" the voice of Bible-believing Christians in a critical election year, the James Madison center for Free Speech has posted "Do's and Don'ts for Political Activities of Pastors" and "Guidelines for Political activities by Churches and Pastors" on its Web site, www.jamesmadisoncenter.org.
