God and Country: Some Voters More Polarized Over Religious Views

Newswise — Thomas Hirschl, a Cornell University professor of development sociology whose research focuses on social class differences in contemporary society, is the lead author of a recently published study that examines religious polarization among American voters. He comments on those findings, and their implications for the 2012 presidential race.

Hirschl says:

“First, there is new evidence that religious identity has been influencing voter choice – from 1980 when Ronald Reagan was first elected up to the 2008 Obama/Biden victory – and that this influence is strengthening significantly.

“Upper-income white Protestants who believe the Bible is the literal word of God have more than doubled their odds of voting Republican – from 2.7 GOP voters for every 1 Democratic voter among this group in 1980, to 6.1 for every 1 in 2008. Conversely, secular-minded, upper-income white Protestants reversed their partisan preference – from 1.9 to 1 in favor of the Republican Party in 1980, to a 2.2 to 1 advantage for Democratic voters in 2008. That means religious-partisan differences among upper income, white Protestants increased dramatically. This polarization trend is also found for upper-income white Catholics.

“There is, however, no similar trend among lower-income white Protestants or Catholics. Also, African-Americans remained loyal Democratic voters throughout the 28-year study period, showing no inclination to polarize around religious identity.

“Overall, it’s clear that religious identity strongly motivates upper-income white voters, but does not seem to drive African-Americans or lower-income whites headed to the ballot box. Heading into Election 2012, there’s no doubt religious worldviews will continue to play an active role in presidential politics, and little evidence to suggest that this role will diminish in the near future.”

Note: The complete study, “Politics, Religion, and Society: Is the United States Experiencing a Period of Religious-Political Polarization?” is available online at www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/res/article/view/19481.