The Catholic Vote

Apparently, there has been a steady swing of Catholic voters from the Democratic to the Republican Party over the past few US elections:

2006 - 42% Republican
2008 - 44% Republican
2010 - 54% Republican

Catholics are not much heeded as a voting block, but they are a huge one, and this swing is historic. Not long ago, it was instinctive to pull the level for the straight Democratic ticket if you were Catholic.

The same thing is happening in Canada: used to be automatic to vote Liberal if you were Catholic; now the Conservatives are increasingly the Catholic party.