Polls: Mitt Romney slipping among Catholic voters
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Three out of four recent polls show GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney is losing support among Catholics despite his selection of a Catholic running mate and support from the church’s U.S. hierarchy.
The survey that has received the most attention to the trend is by the Pew Research Center, which has Romney trailing President Barak Obama among Catholic voters, 51-42 percent, as of Sept. 16. In June, a Pew poll gave Obama a 47-45 percent edge among Catholics.
Romney has never had significant support among Catholic voters, according to the Pew surveys, having the advantage over Obama just twice since late last year: 50-47 percent in October 2011 and 50-45 percent in May of last year.
Why is the Catholic vote critical for Romney?
“Catholic voters, who accounted for more than a quarter of the electorate in the 2008 election, have voted with the winning presidential candidate in every election going back to the early 1990s,” CNN reported.
“In 2008, Obama beat John McCain among Catholics by 54 percent to 45 percent. In 2004, John Kerry — the first Catholic nominee for president since John F. Kennedy — lost the Catholic vote to George W. Bush, provoking Democrats to take Catholic outreach more seriously.
“Both major parties had America’s highest-profile Catholic cleric, New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, give the closing prayer at their recent political conventions.”
Before the conventions, Romney tapped conservative Catholic congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate and since last Spring, U.S. Catholic bishops have campaigned against the Obama administration’s mandate that requires some religious institutions, such as colleges and hospitals, to provide cost-free contraception coverage to employees. Both developments were expected to shore up support among Catholics.
But apparently several polls show that hasn’t happened. Obama lost among white Catholics in 2008, according to Pew, but now he and Romney are tied in that demographic.
“That’s the part of the poll that I think is kind of surprising,” John Green, a political science professor at the University of Akron with an expertise in politics and religion, told CNN.
“Green said that it is white Catholics who were most likely to be receptive to the bishops’ recent attacks against the Obama administration over what the church says is the White House’s curtailment of religious freedom.” [More]
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14 Comments
We are in the greatest recession sinse the depression. Is is going to get worse. We had 9-11 two last week with the killing of our ambassador who begged for help from Obama and it was ignored. Obama lied to the America people, had the press play down the event and you are fighting about what Morman’s belive? Obama is destroying our very way of life with his socialiam blue print of America. His attack on the Catholic churchs religious beliefs. For Christianity in America, this is “Custard’s last stand.” As Catholics, (not the Catholics in name only) which is the majiority, smell the coffee!
Would you agree that Obama inherited the worst economic situation since 1930, and the economy has been on the rise since 2008 although very slowly? Obama is not a miracle worker and probably needs the next four years to get it where it should be.
Obama has stated many times that he is a Christian, he may not be a Catholic but he is a Christian.
Lets give Obama the next four years he deserves.
I am a cradle catholic who will vote Obama-Biden in November. I cannot support a party that make racial statements i.e., Santorum, and Gingrich. My African-American parents worked hard their entire lives, they never applied for or received welfare although with 5 children it would have greatly aided my family. My father took every odd job he could find and I began babysitting at 13-14 to help pay my catholic school tuition. As an African-American, one who saw my parents endure horrible racism, and endured much racism myself, I cannot support any party which supports those views. God hates all sin, and racism is a sin. The GOP supports this evil sin in my opinion.
Hope that all of the many people that are saying they are going to vote for Obama on these obnoxious surveys will surprise the country in November. I enjoyed telling 5 callers today I was voting for Obama!! Just going to vote based on job performance in November.
That is totally dishonest and unbecoming for a Christian.
Aly, i am sure that those 5 lies will certainly channge the results of the election. I hope Romney finds out how much he owes to you since you have ensured his election. Maybe he could make you Secretary of make believe land.
Now let’s cut out the nonsense. The veep is a Catholic and the prez is a mainline Protestant Christian. He gave eloquent testimony at the UN this week, reminding the delegates of our First Amendment freedoms and calling for interfaith discussion not mindless violence.
In the words of a good Catholic friend of mine, “I don’t see how a Christian can vote for this Republican ticket.” I agree. Unless the Church has accepted the selfish teachings of St. Ayn Rand.
Discernment, friends. We are selecting the leaders of a diverse country that includes a lot of Christians and others, not the poster boy for one doctrinally “pure” branch of one large denomination.
Ron. Where have you been?
This is what I have been saying for weeks – just not as clearly.
good news
Romney has good Christian value. We have A Catholic vice-president and he is all supportive of the liberal agenda including the HHS mandate and abortion. Where he goes to church is not as important as what he believes. I would trust Romney with his values
Emily–What does Mr. Romney believe? You seem to know he has Christian Values. I am not so sure. If you poke your nose into Mormanism you’ll find the Christ is not God—he is a man only and also a prophet. God on the other hand lives on some unknown plant with a wife–not sure if God has more than one wife. Don’t know her name. God has a body somewhere and you too can become a God through your Morman faith. There are other Gods I guess. The founder of the faith had 50 wives (Joseph Smith) and his successor Brigham Young had 90. There is more but I suggest you investigate on your own and see.
Many ministers consider the social and economic thrust of Mr Romney and Mr Ryan to be both non-evangelical and unbiblical, in that it penalizes the poor for the gain of the already wealthy. Perhaps this is a sign that Catholics are increasingly turning to the scriptures for information and guidance, which would be largely detrimental to the GOP ticket.
While Romney has picket conservative Paul Ryan for his Catholic running mate, we have had a Catholic Vice President since Obama took office.
Are we electing the Conservative Catholic of the year or Vice President of the United States?
The Mormon Faith of Romney is not considered a mainline Christan faith by the church, it is a cult. Unlike Baptism in a mainline church Mormon Baptism is not considered valid in our church.. Their Theology and Christology is alien to ours.
Tony ~ The problem is that, broadly, LDS theology as far as social justice is concerned is similar to ours. Romney seems to be following an “elect of the prosperous” heresy which is alien to ANY form of Christianity.