Religious Views as a Predictor of Vote Choice

This is a study of the relationship between the religious beliefs of people in the United States and their voting patterns. It is also a comparison between such results and that of more traditional voting predictors such as economic status or education level of voters. In general, there has been an apparent separation of church and state. More common predictors of voting behavior that have been used in the past are traditional demographics such as education levels and economic status. Although these traditional predictors are often accurate, religious belief and churches may play a greater, if insufficiently recognized role in the political voting process. This study hypothesizes that the religious variables will be superior to the predictive power of other demographic measures of the same population. This study will compare the results of religious questions to those of To what economic class do you belong? and What is the highest level of education you have completed? that are often used as reliable predictions of voting behavior