Kakki wrote:
While the "religious right"
usually do support conservative candidates, they only represent a small
portion of all people who vote conservative for a thousand reasons other
than religion.
Mary P. wrote:
Can't agree here, Kakki. A "small" portion? Admittedly, the religious right does not represent all conservatives. My own brother, a thoughtful man who is more influenced by his philosophical beliefs on the nature of government and people than by his religious faith in forming political opinions, lies outside this designation. And I realize that you do not identify with this group. However, I'd like to see numbers on the relative breakdown (although I am not suggesting that anyone post them here: LOL!). My thinking is that this faction has been a huge influence on the strategy and goals of the Republican Party since the Reagan administration, is not insignificant, and is not small in number, although it may or may not constitute a majority.
You are quite correct, Mary.
14% of those who voted in the year 2000 identified themselves as members of the Religious Right. And 79% of them voted Republican. Those numbers represent a large number of those who vote, especially considering Bush's slim margin of victory.
Jerry
