Ahead of midterms, economic justice ranks above life issues for many Catholics, researcher says

The majority of Catholic voters cited the cost of living, inflation, and unemployment as higher priorities than life issues in polling ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections, according to a Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) survey that has not yet been made public.

Mark Gray, CARA director at Georgetown University, told anchor Veronica Dudo on “EWTN News Nightly” on Oct. 19 that the nationwide poll, conducted over the summer, will be released later this week.

Gray, who directs the Catholic research institute that conducts surveys, demographic studies, and social-science research on the Catholic Church, said respondents ranked marriage as the most important Church-related issue, ahead of life issues, but that economic concerns, including unemployment, ranked higher overall.

“We did ask respondents about the importance of Church teachings. And life issues are certainly important,” Gray said. “But also economic justice is also right there. Itʼs actually above the life issues at the current moment.”

According to Gray, the majority of Catholics said “high cost of living and inflation and unemployment” rank ahead of life issues as the Nov. 3 elections loom.

Gray said he anticipated the Catholic vote will be most “important” in Midwest states and Florida. “Those tend to always be the places where Catholic voters are really important,” he said, noting that Catholic voters in Texas will also play a notable role as well.

Speaking on the impact of young Catholics in the midterms, Gray said that while the turnout for midterm elections is always lower than presidential ones, CARA’s polling found that “young voters do seem to be well-energized.”

Besides voting trends, CARA often studies topics such as Mass attendance, vocations, parish life, and Catholic demographics.

Pew’s findings on Catholic voters

Statistics from the CARA report come after polling by Pew Research Center found that Catholic registered voters prefer Democratic candidates over Republicans in the upcoming U.S. House of Representatives races by a narrow margin.

With the midterms approaching on Nov. 3, the survey found Catholics favoring Democratic House candidates by 3 percentage points. Pew polled 5,062 adults, which included 3,917 registered voters from Sept. 28 to Oct. 4 for its American Trends Panel. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.6 percentage points.

The poll shows President Donald Trump’s approval rating plummeting among Catholics since he began his second term, with 30% approving of how he has handled his job as president and 67% disapproving. In January 2025, his approval was about 47% among Catholics.