From Real Clear Politics:
More than half the Roman Catholics in this country accept “all” or “most” of the church’s teachings and try to live their lives accordingly, a new survey of Catholic voters has found.
They go to the polls, too. This is especially true of the parishioners who are most active in their church. If Donald Trump manages to win a second term in the White House, he will be indebted to the cadre of highly observant Catholics who believe that the man in the Oval Office and his political party align with their own views of faith, culture, and public policy.
This core group is the 18% of Catholics who say they accept “all of the Church’s teachings” — and that those teachings are reflected in how they live their life. Another 38% report that they accept “most” teachings and try to live their life accordingly. Rounding out the mosaic of self-described Catholic voters in this country: 29% do not accept some of the key teachings of the church; 13% say Catholicism has only a minor influence on their lives; and 2% are lapsed Catholics.
These are among the findings in the latest poll by RealClear Opinion Research. The in-depth survey of 1,521 registered Catholic voters in the United States was conducted from Jan. 28 to Feb. 4, and has a credibility interval of plus or minus 2.77 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. Respondents were contacted online, and the questions were offered in English and Spanish. It is the second such survey done in partnership with Catholic-themed television network EWTN.
The first poll, conducted in November, offered fresh insight into the mindset of a vast voting group that both major U.S. political parties consider crucial in national elections. Among other things, it revealed that a decisive majority of Catholic voters believe the United States is becoming less tolerant toward people of religious faith. Also, by a margin of 2-to-1, registered Catholic voters would like Christian values to play a more important role in society — significantly higher than the 54% of all registered voters who agree with this sentiment.
Among the findings, many Catholics remain divided on the presidential race — which, according to Real Politics, indicates a close election in the fall.
