Despite massive expenditures from far-right
Catholic and anti-abortion super PACs, Santorum
loses the Catholic vote by wide margins in
bellwether states
Washington,
DC – Although it will take months to completely
sort out the implications of Super Tuesday, one
thing is immediately clear: Rick Santorum failed
to win the trust of Catholics.
Despite receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in support from far-right special interests dedicated to shoring up the ‘Catholic vote,’ Santorum’s campaign utterly failed to solidify support within the Catholic community. These outside groups, such as the Susan B. Anthony List, poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into targeted media markets in Ohio. The conservative PAC CatholicVote.org, funded in large part by billionaire pizza magnate Tom Monaghan, worked relentlessly to promote Santorum’s ideological message within Catholic circles.
In addition to his overstated positions on social issues, Santorum recently inflamed the culture war by making outlandish comments on John F. Kennedy’s landmark speech on the role of religion in public life and mocking the role of higher education in America.
“The results from Tuesday demonstrate what we've known for a long time: Catholic voters care more about economic issues that affect their families than they do about socially divisive wedge issues like contraception,” said James Salt, executive director of Catholics United. “Mainstream Catholics want leaders who can address the moral challenges of our day like income inequality, underwater mortgages and poverty, not leaders who perpetuate a never-ending culture war that divides our community.”
According to CNN’s exit polls from Ohio, non-Catholic former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney decisively won the Catholic vote in Ohio by more than 13 percent. Catholics in Ohio, a state considered by many a bellwether in determining the eventual Republican nominee, seemed to be relatively unaffected by efforts to sway their vote rightward.
“It’s striking to me Catholics are more willing to vote for a Mormon than this right-wing Catholic ideologue,” said Salt. “Despite the Catholic far-right’s attempt to buy the Catholic vote in Ohio, those voters want candidates who care about the poor and marginalized, not those interested in driving us apart as a country.”
Founded in 2004, Catholics United is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to promoting the message of justice and the common good found at the heart of the Catholic Social Tradition. For more information about Catholics United, follow us on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/
Despite receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in support from far-right special interests dedicated to shoring up the ‘Catholic vote,’ Santorum’s campaign utterly failed to solidify support within the Catholic community. These outside groups, such as the Susan B. Anthony List, poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into targeted media markets in Ohio. The conservative PAC CatholicVote.org, funded in large part by billionaire pizza magnate Tom Monaghan, worked relentlessly to promote Santorum’s ideological message within Catholic circles.
In addition to his overstated positions on social issues, Santorum recently inflamed the culture war by making outlandish comments on John F. Kennedy’s landmark speech on the role of religion in public life and mocking the role of higher education in America.
“The results from Tuesday demonstrate what we've known for a long time: Catholic voters care more about economic issues that affect their families than they do about socially divisive wedge issues like contraception,” said James Salt, executive director of Catholics United. “Mainstream Catholics want leaders who can address the moral challenges of our day like income inequality, underwater mortgages and poverty, not leaders who perpetuate a never-ending culture war that divides our community.”
According to CNN’s exit polls from Ohio, non-Catholic former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney decisively won the Catholic vote in Ohio by more than 13 percent. Catholics in Ohio, a state considered by many a bellwether in determining the eventual Republican nominee, seemed to be relatively unaffected by efforts to sway their vote rightward.
“It’s striking to me Catholics are more willing to vote for a Mormon than this right-wing Catholic ideologue,” said Salt. “Despite the Catholic far-right’s attempt to buy the Catholic vote in Ohio, those voters want candidates who care about the poor and marginalized, not those interested in driving us apart as a country.”
Founded in 2004, Catholics United is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to promoting the message of justice and the common good found at the heart of the Catholic Social Tradition. For more information about Catholics United, follow us on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/
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