NOV. 10, 2011

Religion & Politics 2012: Candidate Profiles

What are the religious backgrounds of the 2012 presidential candidates? Read the Pew Forum's new religious biographies, which are part of Religion & Politics 2012, an online resource featuring news, analysis and data on faith in the 2012 campaign. The site will be updated throughout the 2011-2012 election season. Content currently available on Religion & Politics 2012 includes a new analysis of the presidential preferences of religious groups, an analysis of the Tea Party movement and religion, resources on Mormonism and the LDS Church in America, and 2010 and 2008 exit poll analyses. VIEW THE CANDIDATE PROFILES >

Presidential Preferences of Religious Groups: Early Polling

One year out from the presidential election, Mitt Romney and Rick Perry had roughly equal support among registered Republican and Republican-leaning evangelicals, and both led Barack Obama in a hypothetical matchup, according to a new analysis of Pew Research Center polling conducted in late September and early October 2011. READ THE ANALYSIS >

SEE ALSO: Religion & Politics 2012

Pew Forum in the News

NOV. 8 - TIME

For black conservatism, the right time and the
wrong candidate

A column by Time magazine correspondent Steven Gray discussing GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain and political conservatism among African-Americans cites data from the Pew Forum's 2009 survey report A Religious Portrait of African-Americans. The report found that 79% of African-Americans say religion is "very important" in their lives, compared with 56% of the total U.S. adult population.