The influential head of the socially conservative Family Research Council vowed to vote for Donald Trump — and to encourage other evangelical Christians to follow suit.
Family Research Council leader Tony Perkins —
who's been reluctant to offer his full support for Trump — took the stage at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland on the last night of the gathering Thursday night to give a full-throated endorsement ahead of the presidential nominee's much-anticipated acceptance speech.
"Donald Trump is the nominee of the Republican Party, and I will be voting for Donald Trump in November, and I will urge my fellow Americans to do the same," Perkins said,
The Hill reports.
"Donald Trump has committed to upholding and protecting the first freedom and therefore our ability as citizens to unite our nation once again under God. Let us go forth from here and do that work."
Perkins, who also serves as a delegate from Louisiana, says Trump has demonstrated his commitment to religious conservative values by his promise to appoint conservative judges, his support for the GOP platform, and the selection of his running mate, social conservative Indiana Gov. Mike Pence.
Perkins's endorsement could be a tipping point for the religious right moving behind the GOP's standard-bearer, The Hill reports.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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