Posted on 09/13/2012 9:41:26 AM PDT by wmfights
A new poll by a Catholic advocacy group shows President Barack Obama has a slight lead over Gov. Mitt Romney among non-Hispanic Catholics, despite the stalled economy and his 2012 establishment of church regulations requiring them to fund contraception and abortion-related services that they abhor.
The poll of 2,629 likely Catholic voters, an unusually large sample, showed that 46.5 percent of non-Hispanic Catholics support Obama, while 45.6 percent support Romney.
The poll was commissioned by The Catholic Association, and it showed Obama getting 49 percent of Catholics overall, including those of Hispanic descent. Only 41 percent support Romney, while 10 percent are undecided.
Even if Romney wins every undecided non-Hispanic Catholic vote, he would only narrowly best Texas Gov. George W. Bush’s 52 percent share during his razor-thin victory in 2000. Bush won support from 56 percent of non-Hispanic Catholics during his comfortable win in 2004.
Even Sen. John McCain won 52 percent of the non-Hispanic Catholic vote in 2008, despite running a poor campaign against Sen. Barack Obama’s wave.
Romney is only slightly ahead of Obama among church-going white Catholics, 46.6 percent to 45.3 percent.
Forty-eight percent of the poll respondents were Democrats; 33 percent were Republicans.
Non-Hispanic whites comprised 65 percent of the Catholics polled; 29 percent were Hispanic.
Fifty-seven percent of respondents agreed with the statement that “[t]he Obama Administration has gone too far in placing restrictions on religious freedom when implementing their programs and policies.”
That’s a reference to Obama’s controversial 2012 policy that forces all denominations to provide their employees with free contraception and some abortion-related services via insurance companies.
Administration officials has suggested they will exempt churches that pass a multi-part government test. Religious leaders from many denominations have promised to oppose the president’s edict in court and at the ballot box.
The poll’s numbers will be disappointing for Romney, and should push him to step up his outreach to Catholics in crucial swing states including Ohio, Iowa, Virginia and Pennsylvania, said Catholic advocates.
But the poll showed that most Catholics are philosophically closer to the GOP than to progressives, said Maureen Ferguson, a senior policy advisor at The Catholic Association.
Seventy-eight percent said rights come from nature and God, not government, she said. “It gets to the fundamental question of government, she said, adding that “one [party] is 100 percent on one side, and the other is 100 percent on the other side.”
In battleground states, “Catholics continue to account for a higher percentage of the electorate than their overall percentage of the population. … Catholics are the key swing vote,” said Matt Smith, president of Catholic Advocate.
His group is trying to boost Catholic turnout in the 2012 election, and help elect Romney.
Also, Catholics who regularly attend Mass are also more likely to vote, he said, creating a slight advantage for Romney.
“Any successful outreach to Catholics must address the prominence issues such as the sanctity of life, traditional marriage, and religious liberty hold, particularly among Mass-attending Catholics,” Smith said.
Romney is trying to boost his Catholic support by hiring Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote.org, to spur support and turnout.
The Catholic advocates were coy about their registration, turnout and advocacy plans.
“We are producing a Catholic voter guide that will be very widely distributed” before the election by lay Catholics, Ferguson said, adding that “we don’t want to telegraph in public what we want to do.”
There must be a huge disconnect between their members and their clergy. The clergy of their church has made their lack of support for obama known.
...Practicing Catholics?
...or simply socially identified Catholics (think CINO’s)?
was it predominantly defrocked females, leftist nuns who are pro abortion?
it must be easy to bury such skewing.
I know if it was a poll reflecting the general population this would seem pretty skewed, but the poll was specific to this particular religious group.
The Church itself never endorses or opposes persons - only policies. But I don’t see how any Catholic could vote for Obama.
that makes them sinners.
How many times are you going to post this useless poll? It is by an ADVOCACY group not church going Catholics...these are Catholics the way Nancy Pelosi is a Catholic....that is to say not at all.
i am a Catholic and live in the middle of liberalsville, NY and can tell you the Catholic church has gone on the offensive, from the pulpit none the less, against obama’s policies all summer...there is NO way he has an 8% advantage amongst Catholics- no effing way...
As my pastor explained eloquently to me, the Church does not and should not endorse persons - because persons can flip-flop. The Church supports - and opposes - policies.
here is from their own website, about their senior fellow:
“
...is a writer and editor writing on issues about religious freedom, Catholicism, and women. She is the founder and editor-in-chief of AltCatholicah, a web magazine devoted to the exploration of faith and gender. Altcatholicah has a Muslim sister-site, AltMuslimah.
“
/// a LOT of organizations with “Catholic” in their name, aren’t.
and this poll, is heavily slanted to Democrats. clearly bogus.
-
compare it to this poll, which INCLUDES liberals, not just devout catholics, yet it gives a vastly different picture:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2924122/posts
“...54% of Catholic voter support he had in 2008 has dwindled to just 27% (MoE +/- 3 points); a historic low level no one running for president can survive.
“
This one favors Gay Marriage and tax payer funded abortion on demand up to birth. The next one does not.
But I know, don’t bother the “Conservatives to reelect Obama” crowd here with the inconvenient facts.
******************
Inconsequential facts is a better description.
A very wise distinction.
Key TCA survey findings:
Catholics who do not attend Mass regularly:
78% say: “Our rights come from nature and God, not government.”
72% say: “America’s exploding federal debt hurts the poor the most.”
66% say: “Religious charitable institutions should not be forced by the government to provide or pay for goods and services they morally object to.”
66% say: “Catholics can disagree about the best way to serve the poor-for example, favoring private charity over government programs – without being 'bad' Catholics.”
57% say: “The Obama Administration has gone too far in placing restrictions on religious freedom when implementing their programs and policies.”
Among regular Mass-attending Catholics:
86% say: “Our rights come from nature and God, not government.”
71% say: “America’s exploding federal debt hurts the poor the most.”
72% say: “Religious charitable institutions should not be forced by the government to provide or pay for goods and services they morally object to.”
71% say: “Catholics can disagree about the best way to serve the poor-for example, favoring private charity over government programs – without being 'bad' Catholics.”
67% say: “The Obama Administration has gone too far in placing restrictions on religious freedom when implementing their programs and policies.”
-— There must be a huge disconnect between their members and their clergy. The clergy of their church has made their lack of support for obama known.-—&
Cultural Catholics don’t go to chuch and are ignorant of Church teaching.
If we win the House & Senate Romney will sign the bills that are sent to him. If obama wins it won't matter what the legislature does. He will ignore them and rule by fiat. obamacare will be impossible to get rid of, the debt will go through the ceiling, and our military will be diminished even further.
I'm voting for Romney.
This is a bunch of junk. First, I do not believe the numbers; second, it is skewed toward Democrats; third, this group is a liberal group of Catholics who only respond to the phony “Social Justice” part of their Catholic upbringing;fourth, it includes lots of hispanics, probabaly illegals as well.
Church going Catholics are deserting the Democrats rapidly.
Ignore this poll as it is a push poll.
So in other words Romney is actually 7 points ahead of Obama among Catholics...
Right on. Liberalism touts everything. It is a form of bone cancer. You can never get it out of your body & it presents itself every minute. Yes gang. The commies have won. We are & will live in a totalitarian nation. I say get out now because the day will come when you can't.
I know you Conservatives to Reelect President 0bama (CREEP0) members don't like the inconvenient facts about Romney however that does not change your fiction to fact.
Bingo! The problem is that, when responding to pollsters’ questions about religion, anyone who was ever in any way “Catholic” tells the pollster he is “Catholic”. So, you have people who haven’t been to church since their First Communions calling themselves Catholic. I am a practicing Catholic and I assure you that practicing non-hispanic Catholics will vote for Romney by a large majority.
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