![\"little-voter-discomfort-5\"](\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2012\/07\/little-voter-discomfort-5.png\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\nViews of Romney\u2019s Religion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n Six-in-ten voters (60%) are able to identify Romney as a Mormon. About one-in-ten voters (9%) say that Romney belongs to some other (non-Mormon) religion and 32% say they do not know what Romney\u2019s religion is.<\/p>\n\n \n The percentage of voters who know that Romney is a Mormon has remained largely unchanged since March (58%). Last November, before the start of the GOP primaries, 48% said Romney is a Mormon.<\/p>\n\n Seven-in-ten Republican voters know that Romney is a Mormon (70%). Fewer Democrats (54%) and independents (60%) identify Romney\u2019s faith. Awareness has increased across party lines since last November, when 58% of Republicans, 40% of Democrats and 52% of independent registered voters identified Romney as Mormon. Older voters and college graduates are more likely to be aware of Romney\u2019s faith than are younger voters and those with less education.<\/p>\n\n Among religious groups, atheist and agnostic voters are most knowledgeable about Romney\u2019s religion; 81% identify him as a Mormon. Roughly two-thirds of white Catholic voters (68%), white evangelicals (66%) and white mainline Protestants (66%) know that Romney is a Mormon. Fewer black Protestant registered voters know that Romney is a Mormon (38%).<\/p>\n\n \n Eight-in-ten voters who are aware of Romney\u2019s religion say that they are comfortable with his religious faith (60%), that his religion does not matter to them (19%) or express no opinion (2%). Among voters who know that Romney is Mormon, about one-in-five (19%) say they are uncomfortable with it. This represents 11% of all registered voters, given that many are unaware of his faith.<\/p>\n\n The general comfort with Romney\u2019s Mormonism spans all major religious groups. About six-in-ten white Catholic voters (62%) and white evangelical voters (59%) who know Romney\u2019s faith say they are comfortable with it, as do 73% of white mainline Protestants.<\/p>\n\n Among voters with no religious affiliation, 54% who know Romney is Mormon say they are comfortable with his religious faith, while 23% are uncomfortable. Atheist and agnostic voters are among the most inclined to say Romney\u2019s Mormonism makes them uncomfortable (30%).<\/p>\n\n There are partisan differences in views of Romney\u2019s religion, but large majorities of Republicans, Democrats and independents who know Romney\u2019s religion say either that they are comfortable with it or that it does not matter. About a quarter of Democratic voters (23%) say they uncomfortable with Romney\u2019s religion, as do 18% of independents and 15% of Republicans.<\/p>\n\n Romney\u2019s Religion Not Hurting Him in Presidential Race\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n Discomfort with Romney\u2019s Mormonism appears to be of little consequence for the upcoming presidential election. Overwhelming majorities of Republican and Republican-leaning voters who know Romney is Mormon support him, whether they are comfortable with his religion or not. Conversely, about nine-in-ten Democrats and Democratic-leaners intend to vote for Barack Obama, regardless of their view of Romney\u2019s faith.<\/p>\n\n \n However, Romney supporters who are uncomfortable with his Mormonism are less enthusiastic about his candidacy than those who are not bothered by his faith. Among Republican and Republican-leaning registered voters who express no discomfort with Romney\u2019s Mormonism, 92% plan to vote for Romney, and 42% back him strongly. By comparison, Republican and Republican-leaning voters who are uncomfortable with his faith still prefer Romney over Obama \u2013 93% say they will vote for him \u2013 but strong support drops to just 21%.<\/p>\n\n The same is true among white evangelical voters. White evangelical Protestants overwhelmingly back Romney over Obama regardless of their feelings about his faith. But evangelicals who are comfortable with Romney\u2019s Mormonism express substantially more strong support for his candidacy than those who are uncomfortable with his faith (41% vs. 16%).<\/p>\n\n Views of Mormonism<\/strong><\/p>\n\n There has been little change in views of Mormonism over the course of the 2012 campaign season. Currently, 23% of non-Mormons say that Mormonism and their own faith have a lot in common, while 61% say Mormonism and their own religious beliefs are very different. These figures are similar to previous polls conducted in November 2011 and August 2007.<\/p>\n\n \n Majorities of most religious groups say that Mormonism and their own respective faiths are very different from each other. This point of view is most common among atheists and agnostics, among whom 84% say Mormonism and their own beliefs are very different.<\/p>\n\n Half of non-Mormons say that Mormonism is a Christian religion, while 31% say it is not a Christian faith, and 19% say they don\u2019t know whether Mormonism is Christian. These figures have not changed since 2007.<\/p>\n\n The greatest skepticism about whether Mormonism is a Christian faith is among white evangelicals (42% of whom say it is not) and black Protestants (38% of whom say it is not). Majorities of white mainline Protestants, white Catholics and religiously unaffiliated respondents say Mormonism is a Christian religion.<\/p>\n\n \n Views of Obama\u2019s Religion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n There has long been significant confusion about Barack Obama\u2019s religious faith. In mid-October of 2008 \u2013 just weeks before his election \u2013 only 55% of voters identified him as Christian. Most of the rest (31% of registered voters) said they did not know what his religious faith was, and 12% said they thought he was Muslim.<\/p>\n\n \n To the extent that these views have changed over his first term in office, the shift has not been toward greater awareness of Obama\u2019s Christian faith. Currently, 49% of registered voters identify Obama as Christian, while 31% say they don\u2019t know what he is, and 17% misidentify him as Muslim.<\/p>\n\n The slight rise in the number saying that Obama is a Muslim has been most pronounced among conservative Republicans. The number of conservative Republicans who say Obama is a Muslim has doubled since October 2008 (from 16% to 34%). There has been virtually no change in the share of moderate and liberal Republicans who say Obama is Muslim, or among any Democratic or Democratic-leaning groups.<\/p>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n