Politics & Elections

ANALYSIS April 17, 2012

General Election Preferences by Religious Group

The latest Pew Research Center polling shows that Obama has strong support from black Protestants and the religiously unaffiliated, while Romney holds a lead among white evangelicals and white Catholics. The complete report includes general election preferences by religion and by gender within religious groups as well as voters' views on which issues are very important in deciding who to vote for this fall.

ANALYSIS April 4, 2012

Religion and the 2012 Republican Primaries: Maryland and Wisconsin

In the Maryland and Wisconsin primaries, Romney and Santorum ran neck and neck among white born-again/evangelical voters, while Romney was the clear favorite of non-evangelical voters. Romney was also victorious among Wisconsin voters who attend religious services only occasionally and those who attach little importance to having a candidate who shares their religious beliefs.

ANALYSIS March 26, 2012

Religion and the 2012 Louisiana Republican Primary

Rick Santorum got his first clear victory among Catholics in Saturday's Louisiana primary in addition to winning among white evangelical Christians, people who attend worship services weekly and voters who say it is at least somewhat important to have a candidate who shares their religious beliefs.

POLL March 21, 2012

More See "Too Much" Religious Talk by Politicians

A new survey finds signs of public uneasiness with the mixing of religion and politics. The number of people who say there has been too much religious talk by political leaders stands at an all-time high in Pew Research Center surveys, and most Americans continue to say that churches and other houses of worship should keep out of politics.

ANALYSIS March 21, 2012

Religion and the 2012 Illinois Republican Primary

Exit polling from the Illinois Republican primary shows that Romney continues to draw less support from white born-again/evangelical voters than from non-evangelicals, while Santorum has yet to secure an outright victory among Catholic voters in any state for which data are available.

ANALYSIS March 14, 2012

Religion and the 2012 Republican Primaries: Alabama and Mississippi

Santorum won narrow victories in both the Alabama and Mississippi Republican primaries, but exit polling shows there was no clear winner among white born-again/evangelical voters in either state.

ANALYSIS March 7, 2012

Religion in the Super Tuesday Primaries

Exit polls from Super Tuesday primaries show that Mitt Romney continues to struggle among evangelicals, and Rick Santorum is yet to win among Catholics in any state where exit polling was conducted.

ANALYSIS March 2, 2012

Synopsis of Religion in the Early Republican Primaries

Data from exit or entrance polling in the seven states where it has been conducted for GOP primaries and caucuses show that Mitt Romney’s fortunes among white born-again/evangelical voters have fluctuated from state to state. He has received less support from evangelicals than from non-evangelicals in every contest for which data are available.

ANALYSIS February 29, 2012

Religion and the 2012 Republican Primaries: Arizona and Michigan

Mitt Romney won the Arizona primary by a large margin and secured a narrow victory in the Michigan primary. In both states, his support among born-again/evangelical voters was weaker than among non-evangelicals, continuing the pattern from previous primaries and caucuses in other states.

ANALYSIS February 23, 2012

Religion in the News: Islam and Politics Dominate Religion Coverage in 2011

The biggest religion stories of 2011 involved tensions over Islam and questions about faith in presidential politics, especially Mormonism, according to an annual review of religion in the news.

ANALYSIS February 15, 2012

Religion and the Presidential Campaign: February Update

A new Pew Research Center poll finds that Rick Santorum and Mitt Romney are now virtually tied in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum’s improving fortunes in the GOP race have been buoyed by a surge in support among white evangelicals, who now express a clear preference for Santorum over Romney and Newt Gingrich.

ANALYSIS February 14, 2012

Public Divided Over Birth Control Insurance Mandate

Americans who have heard about the federal rule that would require employers to provide birth control as part of their health care benefits are closely divided over whether religiously affiliated institutions should be given an exemption. Sharp divisions of opinion exist on the issue by religious affiliation, party and ideology.

ANALYSIS February 6, 2012

Religion and the 2012 Nevada Republican Caucuses

Romney's win included overwhelming support from Mormons and strong support from Catholic voters. He also won among white born-again/evangelical Protestants, though his support from that group continues to be somewhat more tepid than among non-evangelicals.

ANALYSIS February 2, 2012

Trends in Party Identification of Religious Groups

Since 2008, the share of voters identifying with or leaning toward the GOP has either grown or held steady among major religious groups. This includes both religious groups that are part of the GOP’s traditional constituency as well as some groups that have tended to be more aligned with the Democratic Party, including Jewish voters.

ANALYSIS February 1, 2012

Religion and the 2012 Florida Republican Primary

In his commanding win in the Florida Republican primary, Mitt Romney received strong support from Catholics and from voters who do not describe themselves as white born-again/evangelical Christians. Among both white evangelicals and Protestant voters, Romney ran about even with Newt Gingrich.

ANALYSIS January 23, 2012

Religion and the 2012 South Carolina Republican Primary

In his South Carolina Republican primary win, Newt Gingrich received strong support from born-again/evangelical Christians and from voters who said that it is important to them that a candidate shares their religious beliefs.

ANALYSIS January 19, 2012

Religion and the Presidential Campaign: January Update

Polling conducted Jan. 11-16 shows that Mitt Romney maintains a substantial lead nationally in the race for the GOP nomination and finds few differences in the candidate preferences of some major religious groups.

ANALYSIS January 11, 2012

Religion and the 2012 New Hampshire Republican Primary

Interviews conducted as voters left the polls in the 2012 GOP primary show that Mitt Romney was the winner among born-again evangelical Christians as well as among non-evangelical voters.

ANALYSIS January 4, 2012

Religion and the 2012 Iowa Republican Caucuses

Polling conducted as voters entered the 2012 Iowa caucuses shows a clear split between born-again evangelical Christians, who favored Rick Santorum, and other voters, who favored Mitt Romney.

ANALYSIS December 16, 2011

Religion and the GOP Nomination Race: December Update

Newt Gingrich currently holds a 35% to 21% lead over Mitt Romney among Republican and Republican-leaning voters who say they are very likely to vote in the GOP primaries or caucuses, and his lead is even larger among white evangelical GOP voters.

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