Despite birth control mandate
It appears Catholics nationwide could be stuck with whatever mandate President Obama forces upon them, though he as promised a compromise over birth control mandates but offered few details.
For months, church leaders campaigned against Obama due to the health care mandates. But come Election Day, Carey Funk at the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life says Catholics favored Obama 52 to 45 percent, pointing out a distinct divide.
"Fifty-nine percent of white Catholics voted for Mitt Romney, 75 percent of Hispanic Catholics voted for Barack Obama," says Funk.
That's pretty much been the trend over the past three presidential elections.
"Where you see the swing is coming from the composition of who Catholics are, the combination of white Catholics, Hispanic Catholics, and Catholics of other race and ethnic groups," she says.
The Catholic League's Jeff Fields chalks it up to the immigration debate, and practicing versus non-practicing Catholics.
"The more secular beliefs these Catholics tend to go along with, these non-practicing Catholics, the more they tend to vote Democratic or for the more secular candidates," says Fields.
Income makes a difference as well.
"The lower class Latino Catholics and white Catholics, they tend to vote more for Democrats simply because of the different social programs available to them," he says.
Meanwhile, more than 34 lawsuits challenging the mandate remain out there.
