The Religious Vote: Not Worth Going After

 

The religiously unaffiliated are now a force to be reckoned with—by the Church and by the politicians.

 

Politicians accustomed to measuring the religious right or the Roman Catholic vote, etc., before they draft their platforms have found that the most influential segment of voters is the growing group that affiliates with no religion. You know the type. “I’m spiritual but not religious” is their creed.

Add to the religious melting pot the Jewish vote, the growing segment of Islamic voters and religious “others” and you have a new political challenge.

It is far less easy to address topics that approach social consciousness like abortion, immigration and laws based on sexuality when you don’t know the creeds your voters adhere to.

It is probably a myth that voters adhere to church doctrine in the privacy of the voting booth. But now we have statistics to add to the confusion.

Should this worry the American religious?

A lot of mainline churches stopped taking stands on popular issues a long time ago, drafting social statements that are exercises in political correctness. Perhaps this has been the cue to the American religious to not weigh their vote against the teachings of any church.

There is now statistical evidence that Americans are thumbing their noses at any religious affiliation.

Maybe there is a correlation!