[George J. Marlin is Chairman of the Board of Aid to the Church in Need USA and a member of the Human Life Foundation Board of Directors. His most recent book is Mario Cuomo: The Myth and the Man. The following article is reprinted with permission from The Catholic Thing (www.thecatholicthing.org) where it appeared on January 18, 2025.]

When Donald Trump lost the closely contested 2020 election to Joe Biden, 51 percent of Catholics supported him, as did 61 percent of Evangelicals, and 35 percent of Jewish voters. In 2024, Trump received a majority of the national vote thanks to the support of 58 percent of Catholics, 68 percent of Evangelicals, and 39 percent of Jewish voters. It was a remarkable comeback built on a coalition of middleand working-class folks of every religion and every ethnicity.

To get a sense of what motivated Catholics and other Americans to vote on November 5, the noted pollsters and Trump advisors McLaughlin Associates performed a national post-election survey that gets into the weeds on issues and attitudes. John McLaughlin, a friend for over 30 years, was kind enough to share with me his findings, some of which surprised me, particularly the polling on abortion.

Here’s an overview of the survey’s findings:

Of the Catholics who voted for Trump, 90 percent said it was a vote for him. Only 10 percent said it was a vote against Harris. By contrast, 28 percent of Catholics who supported Harris cast an anti-Trump vote.

When Catholics were asked when they knew which presidential candidate they were going to support, 61 percent indicated they decided before Labor Day. Twelve percent were undecided until early November.

A majority of Catholics (56 percent) believe the Republican Party will do a better job addressing issues that matter most to them. Sixty-one percent indicated that the GOP is best suited to improve the economy and to create more jobs. Sixty-three percent of Catholics believe the GOP will secure the border; 58 percent agree that the GOP will be better at fighting crime.

A plurality of all voters (44 percent) favor smaller government and fewer services, with 35 percent supporting increased government largesse. Catholic sentiment was in line with Americans: 48 percent favor less government and 37 percent favor more.

On the issue of character, despite the media’s constant bashing of Trump—and Democrats calling him a Nazi, a threat to democracy, and a convicted felon—51 percent of overall voters and 58 percent of Catholics perceived Trump as the more likable candidate.

Job approval rating on Election Day:

The most important issue for voters was economics. Forty-seven percent said they were struggling financially as did 49 percent of Catholics.

And the abortion issue?

Election Day was not a good one for the pro-life movement. Pro-abortion referenda won in eight states and lost in only three.

Nationally, abortion was the top issue for 8 percent of voters. For women, it was 10 percent; for men 6 percent. Three percent of Trump voters and 14 percent of Harris supporters considered it highly important. Seven percent of whites, 12 percent of blacks, and 2 percent of Hispanics rated it the number one issue.

Which political party will do a better job of representing their views on abortion?

Here’s the breakdown between pro-life and pro-choice voters:

When asked what comes closest to your personal opinion about abortion laws: Nineteen percent of pro-lifers replied that an abortion should be permitted to save the life of a mother; 31 percent in the case of rape or incest; 50 percent in a medical emergency.

Thirty-four percent of pro-choice voters believe abortion should be legal up to 6 weeks; 34 percent up to 24 weeks; and 43 percent said abortion should be legal for any reason at any time.

As for using tax dollars to pay for abortions:

What do these polling numbers on abortion indicate?

Sixty years after Vatican II, not only has Catholic influence declined in the public square, but “cafeteria” Catholic politicians who have claimed for decades that abortion is merely a religious matter, and therefore, the Church’s position on abortion must not be imposed on others, have influenced many baptized Catholics.

This is particularly true among younger Catholics, likely due to the Church’s declining educational system. In 1965, there were 12,000 parochial schools educating approximately 5 million Catholic children. Today there are about 5,000 schools educating 1.2 million kids. Sadly, some catechists instructing the young are not in agreement with all Church teachings. Then, there have been the abuse scandals that have soured many Catholics on the Church’s authority to instruct on moral matters. And the mixed signals coming out of the Vatican on divorce, same-sex marriage, and other lifestyle issues have confused some Catholics and have led others to believe that anything goes.

As a result, I am not at all surprised that 49 percent of Catholics say they are prochoice, and 44 percent support Federal funding of abortions.

What can be done to change the trajectory?

Perhaps, Church-going Catholics should heed the words New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan delivered on Independence Day some years ago:

The challenge, then, concerns the face of the Catholic faith that our fellow Americans encounter every day. It is a question of evangelization. When done right, our Catholic faith creates a culture of true joy. People can see it in what we do, in how we talk, in the look in our eye. “This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (Jn 13:35) Amid the culture of death that we find all around us, our faith is something that our neighbors will find compelling and may even be something they want for themselves. We must show the culture that seeks to marginalize us that our faith is a living and life-changing reality. The more fundamental challenge needed for us to preserve our American ideals is to boldly live our faith, to boldly proclaim it, and to boldly love God and our neighbor. As Jesus taught, “Let your light shine before all.”

Amen to that.