Tyranny of the Majority

I find Kidd's use of Tocqueville very interesting. At the time of Tocqueville's observations, the 2nd great awakening was at its peak. Dissenting denominations were on the rise and the circuit riders were making their rounds creating an all new class of clergy. To most Americans during this time the "mainline" churches and its clergy represented the tyranny of an elite class. It can be assumed that the sentiments of Americans in the post-revolutionary period toward an elite, educated, state-funded clergy were less than warm. Earlier in Kidd's book, he writes of John Adams' disdain for the kind of evangelical christianity sweeping the country and in his closing chapter he includes Jefferson and Tocquville amongst its critics. However, he states that the nation DID NOT fall under a "tyranny of the majority." I speculate that this might not be entirely the case. The common man, the majority of Americans began to reject mainline congregations, calvinism and their high value of education. As Kidd points out, Calvinists believe that people "were not naturally disposed towards virtue." How does the rise of arminianism (and the change in dominant Christian thought/practice) affect the relationship between the republic and its religious citizens? Did the republic change or adapt to the change in Christian and religious thought?