According to a new poll by the PBS news program "Religion & Ethics Newsweekly" , younger white evangelical Christians are less supportive of John McCain than evangelicals over the age of thirty.

The survey which was conducted in September, found that only 62% of evangelical voters under the age of 30 support McCain while 71% of evangelicals over 30 support his presidency. Evangelical voters under 30 also support Barack Obama in greater numbers (30%) compared with those over 30 who support him (20%).

White evangelical Christians are more likely to believe that McCain is more religious than Obama. Over half of white evangelicals (54 percent) say McCain is the more religious candidate compared to 32 percent of Americans overall. However, a large percent of Americans (including white evangelicals) say they are not sure which candidate is more religious; thirty-one percent of Americans and 23 percent of white evangelicals say they do not know.

Younger white evangelicals are slightly more likely than older white evangelicals to choose Obama as more religious, however only 20 percent of the younger set choose Obama (compared to 13 percent of white evangelicals over age 30).," compared to 65 percent of evangelical women over 30.

GOP Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin were less popular with younger evangelicals  (46%) compared with white evangelical women over 30 (65%) who supported her candidacy.  

When it comes to controversial social issues, other differences emerge between younger and older white evangelicals. A majority of young white evangelical Christians support legal recognition of civil unions or marriage for same-sex couples. Fifty-eight percent of young white evangelicals support some form of legal recognition of civil unions or marriage for same-sex couples; a quarter (26%) support the full right for same-sex couples to marry. White evangelicals over age 30 are less supportive: forty-six percent favor some legal recognition, but only 9% of older white evangelicals favor full marriage rights.

White evangelicals are still solidly pro-life on the issue of abortion, and younger white evangelicals are no exception. Only a quarter (25 %) of white evangelical Christians overall believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Another 46% allow for very limited abortion rights, saying it should be illegal in most cases, and 25% believe it should be illegal altogether. Younger white evangelicals are no exception; they oppose abortion rights in equal numbers to white evangelicals over age 30.