Former Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley makes a formal statement about his resignation at the Capitol Monday, April 10, 2017, in Montgomery, Ala. (Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)

Disgraced former Gov. Robert Bentley ladled out the religious juices in his resignation speech, invoking God and pleading for forgiveness. And it caused plenty of chagrin for church and social conservative political leaders in a state long described as one of the most Bible-believing in the U.S.

"All of that is pure tragedy," said Mack Morris, senior pastor at Woodridge Baptist Church in Mobile, adding that he's most disturbed by the idea that folks listening to pieties from yet another back-slider were thinking to themselves, "Yeah, we've heard that before." Said Morris, "It has the bad apple effect on us all."

Said Joe Godfrey, executive director of the Alabama Citizens Action Program: "You become skeptical and cynical, and people will sometimes react in the opposite direction."

Which begs a question: If Alabama's evangelically attuned electorate turns "skeptical and cynical," what's the effect on two looming political free-for-alls, this year's race for the U.S. Senate and next year's race for governor? Both are expected to draw multiple candidates who will be counting on appealing strongly to church-going voters.

'Ground Zero'

For evangelical voters, the biggest name could surface on Wednesday when Roy Moore is expected to announce his future political plans. It's unclear whether Moore will select a run for the Senate seat or pursue the Governor's Mansion.

Moore, 70, is barred by age from seeking another term on the state Supreme Court.

Moore is widely known for his refusal to remove a Ten Commandments display from the state Judicial Building more than a decade ago. His decision cost him his as Alabama chief justice, and he lost the same job yet again more recently, following his order that sought to stymie gay marriages in the state.

Last year, the conservative-leaning Alabama Forestry Association commissioned a survey of 600 likely Republican voters and found Moore's name atop a list of 10 possible gubernatorial candidates in 2018. Other candidates on the list included then-Attorney General Luther Strange, Alabama Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh and Secretary of State John Merrill, among others.

If Moore decides to run for Senate, his campaigning will have to begin immediately. Supporters and political observers anticipate the religious fervor of his politicking would reach new heights.

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore makes a statement after the special Alabama Supreme Court upheld his suspension Wednesday, April 19, 2017, in Montgomery, Ala. (Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)

"This will be Ground Zero for Christianity and politics and the cultural war because Judge Moore has been tried by fire time and time again, and people know his mettle," said Dean Young, an Orange Beach developer and a long-time Moore associate. "Alabama will be on display in front of the whole world."

Bentley's downfall, according to Young and others, will have no bearing on Moore or any socially conservative rivals on the ballot. "The Christian people of Alabama will decide who will be the next senator and the next governor," Young said.

Steve Flowers, a political commentator and columnist based out of Troy, said that Moore would have a clear path to a runoff, whether for the Senate job or the Governor's Mansion. "He is the evangelical candidate," Flowers said. "I think what you will see is a runoff between the richest man and the most religious man. The two R's."

Alabama repeatedly tops the polls when it comes to church attendance, Bible reading and religious affiliation. It's been that way for decades - in the 1980s, a "lifestyle market analysis" queried Americans about their favorite leisure-time activity, and a majority of Birmingham respondents listed reading the Bible (while residents in San Francisco, for instance, preferred drinking wine and Bostonians favored skiing, according to the 1994 book "Alabama: The History of a Deep South State").

In 2016, a Pew Research poll listed Alabama as No. 1 among states in the number of residents viewing themselves as "highly religious."

Also last year, the American Bible Society named the Birmingham-Anniston-Tuscaloosa area as the second-most Bible-minded metro-region in the U.S., trailing only Chattanooga, Tenn. The Huntsville-Florence-Decatur area came in at No. 12, while the Mobile-Pensacola-Fort Walton Beach, Florida, area was in the Top 30.

"We are a religious and very conservative state," said Flowers. "Don't ever doubt that."

'One of us'

At least some political insiders and observers believe that moral crusading could intensify on the Alabama campaign trail in the aftermath of Bentley's salacious affair and subsequent undoing.

"I think when people face scandals, they go to what is comfortable and helpful to them," said Angie Stalnaker, who once served as Bentley's campaign manager. "Naturally, that means turning to their churches and congregations."

Said Jess Brown, a retired political science professor at Athens State University: "We might have a discussion of ethics and personal behavior maybe more than we've had but I don't think we'll have any more or less discussion about religion." He said that the "social conservative wing of the Republican Party" will be very much involved in the GOP primaries and will be "responsive toward a religious-laden message."

Michael Altman, a religious studies professor at the University of Alabama, said, "All the Republican candidates will have the same basic positions on the issues important to evangelical voters. But which one can sound, act and communicate in a way that makes evangelicals feel that they are 'one of us'?"

In the short term, the spotlight falls on Moore and his decision coming Wednesday.

William Stewart, a professor emeritus of political sciences at the University of Alabama, said that Moore's authentic approach toward his religious convictions - not matter who may view them as over-the-top - stands him in good stead with his base.

"Whatever one may think of Roy Moore, to the best of my knowledge he has practiced what he has preached." Stewart said, pointing to the contrast with Bentley, who had been a church deacon and even an opponent of Sunday alcohol sales in Tuscaloosa.

Brown said that the trouble he foresees for Moore is if the candidate field whittles to two, and the other is a "more mainstream Republican." Moore faced similar difficulties in previous elections, losing out in gubernatorial bids in 2006 and 2010.

Moore will likely have plenty of groups that try to rally opposition to him.

Among them is the Human Rights Campaign, which pushes for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights.

"I hope when voters look at Roy Moore's record (they realize) that they elected a man twice and he failed to uphold the law," said Eva Kendrick, the state manager for the HRC of Alabama.

She expects that, in the future, more and more Alabama voters will be looking beyond the pulpit. "We have to ask ourselves, 'Does good church attendance equal good governance?'," she said. "If the past is any preclude, the answer is, 'No.'"

Robert Wilkerson, a Birmingham-based Christian author and retired minister, expressed concern about politicians climbing on region's shoulders to promote themselves. In his opinion, he said, Moore turned the Ten Commandments monument into a "monument to himself."

"Having a big ego is absolutely opposite to the teachings of the Bible. Jesus was a humble man ... That's not Brother Roy," Wilkerson said.

Trump effect

President Donald Trump and Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., pause during the National Prayer Breakfast, Thursday, Feb. 2, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Alabama's Senate election will also be among the first major political events since President Donald Trump was inaugurated in office in January. Trump won big in Alabama, enjoying a hefty percentage of the evangelical vote.

Altman, the religious studies professor at Alabama, suggested that the unpredictable nature of the 2016 presidential content could be something that repeats itself.

"After the 2016 election, it's hard to tell if there is a religious vote to corner anymore," said Altman. "Most evangelicals preferred (Texas Senator) Ted Cruz to Trump but once Trump got the nomination, about 80 percent of white evangelicals voted for him. Trump was not the typical religious conservative candidate at all yet he managed to unify evangelicals behind him, mostly behind his promises about the Supreme Court."

Young paints a picture of Moore as the "outsider" candidate, similar to Trump, who will battle the "establishment" politicians such as Strange, Marsh or even current Gov. Kay Ivey.

Said Stewart, "The elites detest Moore and his demagogic evangelicalism. However, the same can't be said for the average Alabama (voter) on the farm on in small towns."

Wilkerson, the Christian author, said he hopes voters will be listening with new ears to candidate rhetoric and posturing. "This whole carnival stuff that 'I'll go to Washington, D.C., and cast the devil out' and 'I'm for the people,' that's just a bunch of malarkey," he said. "I would hope Alabama voters have wised up over recent years, particularly recent months."