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Why Democrats Struggle To Mobilize A 'Religious Left' [View all]
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/why-democrats-struggle-to-mobilize-a-religious-left/For the past four decades, the notion that religious beliefs should guide voters decision-making has been largely monopolized by the Republican Party. But the partisan God gap hasnt gone unnoticed by some religious Democrats, who have urged candidate after candidate to make appeals to religious values and beliefs in the hope of turning the religious left into a politically relevant force. And as the 2020 Democratic primary ramps up, theres already speculation that the right candidate could tap a long-dormant reserve of religious energy among Democratic voters.
...And to some extent, forging connections between faith and politics makes sense for Democratic candidates a majority of Democratic primary voters are religious. But there are several big hurdles facing any Democrat looking to use the language of faith to marshal voters in the primary. For one thing, the Democratic coalition isnt dominated by a single religious group. And Democrats dont prioritize religion the way Republicans do in fact, the Democratic Party has been growing steadily less religious over the past 20 years. Certain groups of religious voters in particular, black Protestants will likely play an important role in the primary, and there may be some room for candidates to appeal to religious moderates. But in a diverse and increasingly secular party, religious rhetoric alone may not get the candidates very far.
...And while talking about religion can be a good strategy for gaining media attention, theres little evidence that its translating into actual gains among religious voters at least, not yet. A Morning Consult tracking poll conducted May 20-26 among Democratic primary voters found that Joe Biden, a Catholic, has a commanding lead among all major religious groups, followed in all but one case by Bernie Sanders,2 who may be the only candidate in the race to say he doesnt participate in organized religion.
...And even though a substantial number of Democrats are religious, they have come to make up a smaller and smaller subset of the party. Over the past two decades, the share of people in the Democratic coalition who dont identify with any religion doubled, from 14 percent in 1998 to 28 percent in 2018, according to the General Social Survey. The result is that todays Democratic Party is increasingly secular, which complicates and limits traditional forms of faith outreach. This emerging group of secular Democrats coexists a little uneasily with the more religious wing of the party, said David Campbell, a political science professor at Notre Dame and the coauthor of American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us. Its a sizeable portion of the electorate to ignore, but I think the party has yet to figure out how to appeal to these people.
...And to some extent, forging connections between faith and politics makes sense for Democratic candidates a majority of Democratic primary voters are religious. But there are several big hurdles facing any Democrat looking to use the language of faith to marshal voters in the primary. For one thing, the Democratic coalition isnt dominated by a single religious group. And Democrats dont prioritize religion the way Republicans do in fact, the Democratic Party has been growing steadily less religious over the past 20 years. Certain groups of religious voters in particular, black Protestants will likely play an important role in the primary, and there may be some room for candidates to appeal to religious moderates. But in a diverse and increasingly secular party, religious rhetoric alone may not get the candidates very far.
...And while talking about religion can be a good strategy for gaining media attention, theres little evidence that its translating into actual gains among religious voters at least, not yet. A Morning Consult tracking poll conducted May 20-26 among Democratic primary voters found that Joe Biden, a Catholic, has a commanding lead among all major religious groups, followed in all but one case by Bernie Sanders,2 who may be the only candidate in the race to say he doesnt participate in organized religion.
...And even though a substantial number of Democrats are religious, they have come to make up a smaller and smaller subset of the party. Over the past two decades, the share of people in the Democratic coalition who dont identify with any religion doubled, from 14 percent in 1998 to 28 percent in 2018, according to the General Social Survey. The result is that todays Democratic Party is increasingly secular, which complicates and limits traditional forms of faith outreach. This emerging group of secular Democrats coexists a little uneasily with the more religious wing of the party, said David Campbell, a political science professor at Notre Dame and the coauthor of American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us. Its a sizeable portion of the electorate to ignore, but I think the party has yet to figure out how to appeal to these people.
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"This emerging group of secular Democrats coexists a little uneasily with the more religious wing"
marylandblue
May 2019
#4
I don't think anyone on the religious left want a platform based on religion
marylandblue
May 2019
#30
Yes, there are people who think that, but feeding the poor is a standard progressive position.
marylandblue
May 2019
#34
"Is there any religious left leader who takes a non-progressive position because of religion?"
trotsky
May 2019
#36
I didn't say "progressive orthodoxy" was good or bad, and I'm certainly not calling myself smart.
marylandblue
May 2019
#43
I said that I MIGHT refuse to rule out restrictions until I got more details.
marylandblue
Jun 2019
#67
The fact that you would even consider restricting abortion rights is pretty repulsive.
trotsky
Jun 2019
#68
Well in terms of this thread, in general there is no such thing as a unlimited right.
marylandblue
Jun 2019
#79
OK, so you've basically just restated yourself multiple times. I don't know why.
trotsky
Jun 2019
#88
Discussion about our differing opinions. Which has been known to happen on DU from time to time.
marylandblue
Jun 2019
#91
First, don't tell me what my intentions are. Second, if I make a mistake, I admit it.
marylandblue
Jun 2019
#97
I'm not curious about why you are willing to impose restrictions on a woman's right to choose.
trotsky
Jun 2019
#98
All candidates make a bet. Buttigieg is betting more people will like his religious talk
marylandblue
May 2019
#35
No, the nones are expected to shut up and let the "religious left" do what they want.
trotsky
May 2019
#17
Religious right have a shitload of money. Nun's residence down the road from me, basically a mansion
applegrove
May 2019
#26
And chop that in about half, if you bother to read the next section about how important religion is
AtheistCrusader
Jun 2019
#95
Actually I did support it, contingent upon you actually reading the article.
AtheistCrusader
Jun 2019
#99