Religion & Political Affiliation

[pieman]

Of the Protestant group (Methodists, Episcopalians, Lutherans, etc) evangelicals are GOP. Otherwise, the more often they attend church, the more GOP.

 Church attendance is a better predictor of party than denomination. Those that attend more than once a month tend GOP, those that attend less than once a month tend DEM.

Catholics have tended DEM in the past due to an emphasis on compassion for the poor. In the past, Catholics split along those that have supported DEMS for government programs for the poor and those that have supported GOP for pro-life issues. As the GOP has supported a more "compassionate" platform, more Catholics are moving to the GOP side in line with the pro-life stance of the church. The catholic church is making a bigger fuss about politicans that are pro-choice. Some Bishops have said that if you PUBLICALLY support abortion you should not take communion.  It remains to be seen if this will be followed by the mainsteam catholics though.

[pieman]

But wait...aren't most (I actually have to exclude myself here)...Lutherans scandanavian/german and midwesterners?

(I realize that in the carolinas there is a large amount of republican lutherans, but don't the majority live in the upper midwest?)

No.  

The Lutheran churches are an exception to the general decline among old line protestant churches in the United States.  There has been a quiet and general expansion of lutherans as many protestants flee the politically correct 'churches.'  

No, the majority of American Lutherans do NOT "live in the upper midwest."

Acutally as Scandanavian Americans slowly drop their historical membership in Lutheran churchs (which has been going on for more than two decades) the percentage of Luterans residing in the "upper midwest" has been slightly declining while it has been growing nationwide.

Ethnically, the largest component of lutheran churches in the United States is probably (surprise) people whose historical antecedants are German.

The lutheran churches in the rural parts of Minnesota are much more conservative than the lutheran churches in the metro area.

Lutheran churches in Minnesota tend to reflect the general population in the area they are located rather than being strongly one party or the other in general.