2008: Catholics' View of the Candidates
With the economy and Iraq topping voter concerns, abortion has receded into the political background. That puts Catholics up for grabs — and Obama is winning some converts.
America's Catholics ...
They're about 24% of the population and could tip key states this fall
... and how they view the candidates
A new TIME poll shows McCain and Obama tied, but each man has perceived strengths
TIME Graphic by Jackson Dykman, adapted for the web by Feilding Cage
Sources: Demographic data from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life; map data from Religious Congregations & Membership in the United States: 2000, Glenmary Research Center via the Association of Religion Data Archives. The TIME poll was conducted June 18–25 among a national random sample of 600 adult Catholic likely voters by SRBI Public Affairs. Catholics were identified both in a new cross-section sample and in other previous TIME random-digit-dial samples. The margin of error is ±4 percentage points. The full questionnaire and trend data can be found at www.srbi.com.
Sources: Demographic data from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life; map data from Religious Congregations & Membership in the United States: 2000, Glenmary Research Center via the Association of Religion Data Archives. The TIME poll was conducted June 18–25 among a national random sample of 600 adult Catholic likely voters by SRBI Public Affairs. Catholics were identified both in a new cross-section sample and in other previous TIME random-digit-dial samples. The margin of error is ±4 percentage points. The full questionnaire and trend data can be found at www.srbi.com.
