Esther's Army: The Christian Women Who Power the American Right

by Katie Gaddini

How and why right-wing Christian women have risen to the forefront of American politics.


The 2024 election of Donald Trump was the culmination of the strategic efforts of Christian women over six decades.


Sociologist Katie Gaddini was with them as they organized, rallied, and celebrated. As a former evangelical, Gaddini speaks the language of the Christian Right fluently. In Esther’s Army, she profiles six distinct college idealists, anti-feminist powerhouses, Black conservatives, MAHA social media influencers, white suburbanites, and “Mama-Bears” marching on state capitols to ban books and gender initiatives. Observing Christian women’s activism from grassroots networks to conservative academies and law school to public politics and jobs at the White House today—as they borrow feminist rhetoric to “lean in” to their executive skills while rejecting liberal feminism—Gaddini reveals how these women have turned being underestimated into a strategic force.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Religion

208 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication June 30, 2026

About the author

Katie Gaddini is a sociologist at the Social Research Institute, University College London. She is also a visiting scholar at Stanford University. Outside of work, she enjoys reading fiction, and visiting Italy, preferably at the same time.

Reviews

[SarahO · Rating 4 out of 5]

Women are not a voting block. That’s the sentence that kept running through my head as I read this book. It was a lesson learned almost as soon as women got the vote. They did not all care about the same things, at the same level. “Esther’s Army” follows many different Christian woman who all fall under the title “Conservative.” Some may think, how can women truly follow a party that constantly seems to denigrate them? Well, that’s not how these women see themselves.
The author, a self described feminist and a former evangelical who grew up in these circles, seeks to help the reader understand the pull of the Conservative movements over the last couple decades. Though, by the end of the book, I’m not sure she has come to an understanding herself. She followed some college students, “momma bears”, influencers, “Blexiters”, and a few other groups. While the author usually let the women speak for themselves without much input, she will occasionally call out the hypocrisy, especially of the women who were political powerhouses in the 80’s. Leaders like Phyllis Schlafly talked the anti-feminist talk but walked the walk of a feminist. It is pointed out that many of today’s political powerhouses are trying to claim the title of feminist that their predecessors fought so hard against. I am glad of this as it always irritated me how truly feminist the antis were back then.
I thought this was a really fascinating look at conservative Christian groups of women who want to fight for what they believe is true just as much as the rest of us. If we take a good enough look, we can also realize that extremism on both sides of the political parties run similar and neither will lead to the healing of this country or the unity of Christian sisters who fall on both sides. I lament that Christianity in the U.S. has been co-opted by the Conservative party. I am reminded of Joshua 5:13-14, when Joshua asks the commander of the Lord’s army, “are you for us or for our enemies?” The angel responds “Neither.”

[Ellie Moon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and W.W. Norton & Company for providing me with an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

“Esther’s Army” is a comprehensive analysis of conservative/right-wing Christian women and their relationship with politics and power. Gaddini explicates the various motivations and contradictions of conservative women through analysing several archetypes, including parallels with historical figures of the movement. One particular observation I found particularly astute was of conservative women as laying claim to a sort of feminism.

As someone with a deep interest in this topic, there was not a plethora of new information for me in this book. As a regular listener of podcasts and books about Christian nationalism and right wing culture I’m quite familiar with the various influencers and political figures introduced in the book and their impact. However, I do think this book fills an important gap and is very accessible for readers who have less knowledge on the topic and are curious about this incredibly complex and dynamic group.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a reader, I could tell the author was left leaning by how she worded some of her arguments/interviews/experiences. I am glad that she pointed out that she is a former evangelical and former Republican.
Overall, a nice book to read to learn about some Christian Conservative women throughout history. The book is well organized and easy to read. However, I probably won’t recommend it to my Christian Conservative friends.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good primer on a very broad topic. I think this book could have easily been fifty pages longer, in fact I was surprised it was so short. Gaddini is an engaging writer, it felt conversational while still being factual. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.