The 2024 presidential election saw a seismic shift in the Catholic vote, delivering a decisive victory for Donald Trump and leaving experts pondering the future of the religious bloc in American politics. While Catholics were evenly split between Trump and Joe Biden in 2020, they swung massively in favor of Trump this time, propelling him to a landslide win.
CatholicVote, a conservative activism group, attributes this shift to Vice President Kamala Harris’ stance on abortion and her opposition to religious exemptions for healthcare providers. Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote, believes that Harris’ position alienated many Catholic voters, particularly those who hold traditional views on the issue. “Democrats in the past have been able to hold together a lot of Catholic voters, whether by tradition or by platitudes around social justice and posturing as if they cared about the poor and vulnerable,” Burch said. “It turns out in this election, the poor and vulnerable are the people suffering from inflation and from an out-of-control border that had created crime and instability in their communities.”
This sentiment is echoed by Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, who believes Harris’ stance was seen as a direct attack on the Catholic faith. “She was rejected primarily because she is associated with the politics of extremism, and that is something the American people will never countenance,” Donohue stated.
CatholicVote, which issued its first presidential endorsement for Trump in January, launched a targeted campaign to mobilize Catholic voters. Their efforts involved $10 million in advertising, educational programs, and a door-to-door canvassing program focused on swing states like Arizona, Nevada, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. These efforts, according to CatholicVote, helped to sway a significant number of undecided Catholic voters towards Trump.
While Harris’ stance on abortion was a major factor, Trump’s message of economic improvement, border security, and restoring law and order also resonated strongly with Catholic voters, especially those in working-class communities. Burch believes that Trump’s message has created a new synthesis of “a populist social justice that prioritizes family first policies, America first economic policies, and then, in a larger way, the plight of the everyday American who feels left behind by their own government.”
The 2024 election results highlight a significant change in the Catholic vote, signifying a growing influence of conservative activism and a potential shift in the political landscape. The debate surrounding abortion access and religious freedom continues to be a key issue in American politics, and the Catholic vote, as demonstrated by the recent election, will likely continue to be a pivotal factor in future elections.
