A new Gallup poll released Monday found that Americans who most value religion are more likely to vote Republican.
Forty-one percent of respondents were “very religious,” saying they attend “religious services every week or almost every week.” Thirty percent of Americans were “nonreligious,” which means they “say religion is not an important part of their daily lives and that they seldom or never attend religious services.” Finally, Gallup identified 29 percent as “moderately religious,” meaning they “do not attend services regularly, or … religion is not important but … they still attend services.”
Nearly half, or 49 percent, of “very religious” Americans favor the GOP, while 36 percent of “very religious” Americans favor Democrats. Moderately religious Americans edged Democratic, 44 percent to 38 percent, and 52 percent of non-religious Americans favored Democrats, as opposed to 29 percent that favored Republicans.
The poll, which interviewed 87,023 people from January through June of this year, shows that the GOP held a 39-point advantage with “very religious” whites, and a 16-point advantage over Democrats among moderately religious whites. However, only one-third of non-religious whites supported the GOP. This is compared to 51 percent who stood with Democrats.
Approximately three-quarters of black Americans identified with Democrats over the GOP, regardless of the level of religiosity. Hispanic and Asian poll respondents likewise favored Democrats by enormous margins, though the GOP garnered far more support among these ethnicities than among black Americans.
Census estimates in 2013 show that 63 percent of Americans are white, 17 percent are Hispanic, 13 percent are black, and five percent are Asian. The non-white constituency is expected to rise, as black Americans have more children than their white counterparts and Hispanics continue to migrate.