Date of Award
4-2021
Document Type
Thesis
Department
Political Science
First Advisor
Patrick Donnay
Abstract
Throughout the history of the United States, voting trends in American elections have evolved. One example of this is how the Catholic vote has changed since the 1960s. Factors such as race, gender, economics, and religious values may impact voting trends. These factors may have some impact on the shift in the Catholic voting trend. To determine this, I studied how Catholic voters feel about certain issues and how their responses may differ by income level, race, and gender. In my analysis I used data from the Congressional Campaign Election Study, which was gathered by a survey of voters in the United States. The results from the survey raised questions about why religious voters have shifted their voting tendencies. Previous research showed that issues such as abortion caused Catholic voting tendencies to change, but my results are consistent with studies that contradict that idea. My analysis challenges the conventional wisdom on the Catholic voter realignment.
Recommended Citation
O’Brien, Benjamin, "Catholic Voting: The Influence of Abortion" (2021). Political Science Theses and Capstones. 29.
https://pines.bemidjistate.edu/capstone-polisci/29
Included in
American Politics Commons, Catholic Studies Commons, Christianity Commons, Politics and Social Change Commons
