The battle for the Catholic vote has put US Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett’s Catholic faith under the microscope. Trump’s pro-life stance will net him support from conservative Catholics, Biden’s supporters have argued that catholics are multi-issue voters, likely to be put off by Trump’s rhetoric and divisive policies.
However, a recent poll of nearly 1,500 Catholics, from RealClear Opinion Research, found that likely voters support AMC’s nomination by a margin of nearly 20%.
Results showed that 46% supported Barrett’s nomination, with 28% opposing and 27% undecided. The poll showed a political divide. 77% of Catholic Republicans support the nomination – only 4% oppose it – while 24% of Catholic Democrats supported it and 46% opposed.
It also found that the stricter the Catholic, the more likely they support the nomination. 74% of those who follow all the teachings of the Church were in favour, while only 39% of those who don’t accept all the Church’s teachings do.
Three-quarters of respondents supported the bar on religious tests for public office.
While most Catholics are broadly in of favour Coney Barrett’s nomination, there is still little clarity on their voting inclination. On religion and culture, they would appear to align with Trump, but they remain doubtful about his being the best man to deal with the coronavirus.
In another poll by RealClear Opinion Research in late September concluded that 83% of the 1,212 surveyed were concerned about the recent vandalism of churches in recent months. Large majorities were similarly concerned by anti-Christian hostility and the destruction of statues of Catholic heroes such as Christopher Columbus and Father Junipero Serra. Trump has made much of his stance about the need to protect such monuments.
The traditional voting concerns of Catholics – health care, the economy, national security and immigration – have changed, said John Della Volpe, the director of polling for RealClear Opinion Research. Their three main concerns in the build in 2020 are the economy and jobs, the coronavirus, and health care. This is more likely to hurt the incumbent President than his Democrat challenger.
Asked which candidate they trusted more with regard to dealing with the coronavirus, 52% o cited Joe Biden while only 34% backed Donald Trump.
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