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Mormonism an Issue for Voters

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has said he does not believe his Mormon faith will not hinder his chances of winning the presidency, but figures compiled by NPR from a number of media outlets show a large number of voters consider Mormonism a detracting factor when choosing a candidate.

Below are a number of polls compiled over the past few months.

A Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll from June 2006:

Percentage of 1,321 respondents who said they could NOT vote for the following presidential candidates due to religion:

A Mormon candidate: 37%
A Jewish candidate: 15%
A Muslim candidate: 54%
An evangelical Christian candidate: 21%
A Catholic candidate: 10 %

A Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll from December 2006:

Percentage of 1,489 registered voters surveyed who could NOT vote for one of the following, even if they were presidential candidates nominated by the respondents' party and even if they and the respondents were in general agreement on most issues:

A Mormon: 14%
A 72-year-old: 14%
A woman: 4%
An African-American: 3%

A Newsweek poll from December 2006:

Percentage of 864 registered voters surveyed who would NOT vote for the following for president even if they were qualified for the job and nominated by the respondent's party:

A Mormon: 25%
An African-American 3%
A woman: 8%

An NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll from December 2006:

Percentage of 1006 adults asked whether they were very uncomfortable or have some reservations about voting for a presidential candidate who is:

Mormon: 53%
Jewish: 19%
An evangelical Christian: 54%

An ABC News/Washington Post poll from December 2006:

Percentage of 1005 adults who said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate for president who is:

Mormon: 35%

A Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll from December 2006

Percentage of 900 registered voters who said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate for president who is:

Mormon: 32%
Protestant: 6%
Roman Catholic: 10%
Jewish: 10%
A member of the Christian Coalition: 24%
Muslim: 45%
An atheist: 50%
A Scientologist: 53%

Percentage of 900 registered voters who said they be less likely to vote for Mitt Romney because he's a Mormon: 24%

This program aired on February 8, 2007. The audio for this program is not available.

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