Published September 26, 2014

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks at the fourth annual Texas Tribune Festival held at the University of Texas at Austin in Austin, Texas, on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014. (AP Photo/Austin American-Statesman, Rodolfo Gonzalez)(The Associated Press)

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) speaks at the California GOP convention on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014, in Los Angeles. Paul has sought a broader audience this year as he has aggressively traveled the country ahead of a potential presidential bid in 2016. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)(The Associated Press)

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. speaks at the 2014 Values Voter Summit in Washington, Friday, Sept. 26, 2014. Prospective Republican presidential candidates are expected to promote religious liberty at home and abroad at a gathering of evangelical conservatives, rebuking an unpopular President Barack Obama while skirting divisive social issues that have tripped up the GOP. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)(The Associated Press)

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas speaks at the 2014 Values Voter Summit in Washington, Friday, Sept. 26, 2014. Prospective Republican presidential candidates are expected to promote religious liberty at home and abroad at a gathering of evangelical conservatives, rebuking an unpopular President Barack Obama while skirting divisive social issues that have tripped up the GOP. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)(The Associated Press)

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. speaks at the 2014 Values Voter Summit in Washington, Friday, Sept. 26, 2014. Prospective Republican presidential candidates are expected to promote religious liberty at home and abroad at a gathering of evangelical conservatives, rebuking an unpopular President Barack Obama while skirting divisive social issues that have tripped up the GOP. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)(The Associated Press)

WASHINGTON Prospective Republican presidential candidates are expected to promote "religious liberty" at home and abroad at a gathering of religious conservatives, rebuking an unpopular President Barack Obama while skirting divisive social issues that have tripped up the GOP.

The annual Voters Value Summit opens Friday in Washington with speeches from several potential presidential candidates, including Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal. The speaking program features ambitious Republicans with positions on social issues across the spectrum from the libertarian-leaning Paul, who favors less emphasis on abortion and gay marriage, to Huckabee, a former Southern Baptist pastor whose conservative social values define his brand.

But evangelical organizers of the event largely expect participants to unite around what they call Obama's attack on religious liberty, according to Tony Perkins, president of the host organization, the Family Research Council. Perkins cited an Obama administration rule that compels health insurers to cover female contraception in addition to a foreign policy he says doesn't do enough to protect Christian values around the world.

"Without religious freedom we lose the ability to even address those other issues," Perkins said of social issues, declaring that "a fundamental shift" is underway toward religious freedom but that evangelical voters would not forget conservative values such as traditional marriage come Election Day.

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Republicans rallying behind 'religious liberty' as evangelical summit begins