The 2819 Church founder urged believers to let Kingdom values guide the ballot, a message drawing fresh attention as Election Day nears.
By EEW Magazine Online News Editors
Hello, World!
Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell speaks onstage during Day 2 of Invest Fest 2025 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta on Aug. 23, 2025. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images)
A sermon clip featuring Atlanta pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell is circulating again on social media in the final days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, renewing attention to his challenge to Christians who let race or party loyalty decide their vote. “I’m not just pulling a lever for blue just because I’m Black,” Mitchell tells his congregation in the sermon, first published March 12, 2023.
The founder and lead pastor of 2819 Church argues that believers should weigh candidates by the values of God’s Kingdom, and his words are landing again as voters prepare to choose members of Congress and fill state and local offices.
The remarks, reshared on Instagram, predate the current election cycle. Their return places Mitchell inside a long-running conversation about Christian conviction, political loyalty and the historic relationship between Black churches and the Democratic Party.
The sermon, part of his Kingdom Gems series, draws on Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:13, where He calls His followers the salt of the earth. Mitchell reads salt’s preserving work as a charge for believers to hold back moral decay in every area of life, the voting booth included.
“I pull the lever to keep back decay,” he says.
Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell wears a 2819 Church jacket reading “Until All Have Heard” in an image shared on his Instagram. (Photo: Instagram/@philipamitchell)
His guiding question is which candidates best represent the values of the Kingdom. He tells listeners that party identity produces party votes, and he urges them to let their identity in the Kingdom shape their choices instead.
Later in the message, Mitchell names his opposition to abortion as a conviction that shapes his vote. He says he will not support candidates who promote abortion rights, even when that stance sets him apart from many other Black voters. He does not endorse a candidate or party in the sermon.
The clip is circulating at a time when Black Christians remain strongly aligned with Democrats. In an Oct. 13 analysis, the Pew Research Center reported that 74% of Black Protestant registered voters preferred the Democratic candidate in their U.S. House district, compared with 6% who preferred the Republican. The remaining 20% chose another candidate or were unsure. Pew surveyed voters Sept. 28 to Oct. 4, and the figures measure stated preferences ahead of Election Day.
Mitchell’s profile has grown alongside that conversation. His nondenominational congregation, 2819 Church, draws largely young adults and reported about 6,000 weekly churchgoers in late 2025, up from fewer than 200 in 2023, according to The Associated Press.
He has also kept his pulpit at a distance from partisan activism. Asked in an Oct. 21 Atlanta Journal-Constitution video report whether pastors have a responsibility to address politics from the pulpit, Mitchell described civic engagement as a personal decision. “We have not engaged explicitly in political activism from our platform,” he said.
Earlier this month, Mitchell brought his testimony to a national audience on The Breakfast Club. Appearing on the Oct. 14 episode to discuss his new book, “Contend,” he told hosts Charlamagne tha God, DJ Envy and Jess Hilarious about growing up in Queens, New York, as the son of believing immigrant parents from Trinidad. He described years spent in the streets and the day, around age 24, when he says God met him in a bathroom and changed his life.
Anthony Mitchell’s “Contend: Standing Boldly for Biblical Truth While Winning the War Within,” with a foreword by Matt Chandler. (Cover: Thomas Nelson/Illustration by EEW Magazine Online)
When a co-host asked how anyone knows they have done enough to repent, Mitchell answered with the Gospel. He told the hosts that Christ paid the price for sin, that all who place their faith in Him are forgiven, and that salvation is a free gift to be received. “You will never do enough to earn love from God,” he said.
He closed the interview by praying over the hosts on air, asking God to draw anyone listening who felt far from Him.
“Contend” has since reached No. 1 on The New York Times best-seller list, Mitchell announced on Instagram. “Tears of gratitude,” he wrote. “Heart burdened for the Church in this critical hour.”