GOP (illegally) uses the church to get out the vote

I've been discussing Democratic GOTV efforts in comparison to Republican efforts with my similarly ideologically-aligned cousin. Here's what he heard about the Republican efforts.

Yes, actually... You were 1/2way to the truth. I just heard all about it on NPR. Cheapest voter drive ever. Evangelicals dropped $250,000 to produce and distribute a DVD and paper flyers about the gay marriage initiatives to tens of thousands of churches and hit the eyeballs of an estimated 5,000,000 evangelical voters starting in September. Ask me how it is legal for a church to show DVDs and hand out flyers telling people to vote a certain way... Cause I have no idea. But, yeah, in the end, it was more effective than rational people talking to people at their homes. Sad. One in five voters in Ohio identified themselves as born again Christians.

I have no reason to doubt NPR or what my cousin said about the story. I wish I documented my evidence of this because I had my camera in hand at the time, but I was at a church off I-75 in Ohio, halfway between Dayton and Cincinnati. I pulled off the highway to take some pictures of this huge-ass Jesus statue, and as I walked back to my car, I saw a few political signs near the church entrance telling people that they needed to protect marriage. As you well know, that's Evangelical for "anti-gay marriage." But there these signs sat, staring me in the face and I had my camera in hand... And still unsure of whether or not I'd be late for my flight, so I drove off.

I'll kick myself in the ass so you don't have to do it for me.