In which elections before 1972 did the GOP presidential nominee carry Catholics?

[TDAS04]

Harding almost certainly won a majority of Catholics who voted in 1920, and there's a good chance that Coolidge won a plurality in 1924.  1956 is possible.

What do you think?  I'm particularly curios about percentages for the 1920s.

[Sumner 1868]

There's conflicting studies in 1956 (Gallup says Stevenson won Catholics, but National Election Studies says Ike did), but Coolidge undoubtedly won the Catholic vote in 1924.

[TDAS04]

Does anyone have percentages from the 1920s, or information on which Catholic ethnicities were most likely to vote a certain way?

[SingingAnalyst]

Despite tension between Irish and Polish Catholics, I suspect both voted Harding-Davis-(overwhemingly) Smith. Italians were a bit less Dem, with Germans being the most GOP.

[TDAS04]

Bump

I'm curious about percentages for 1920 and 1924.  Maybe Mechaman has an idea?

[Indy Texas 🇺🇦🇵🇸]

Despite tension between Irish and Polish Catholics, I suspect both voted Harding-Davis-(overwhemingly) Smith. Italians were a bit less Dem, with Germans being the most GOP.

Wouldn't that have had as much to do with where they tended to live (Midwest and Great Plains) as anything else?

[H. Ross Peron]

1896 seems like one of the best candidates.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

My guess, estimating from the geography of the vote and considering the campaigns, is that 1896 was a narrow loss of Catholics for the GOP, 1908 a narrow win. In either case, it looks very close.  In 1920 I think GOP must have won Catholics, and likewise 1924 - though in that case a plurality rather than majority.   For 1956, Gallup polled a statistical dead heat among Catholics between Ike and Adlai.

[TJ in Oregon]

Despite tension between Irish and Polish Catholics, I suspect both voted Harding-Davis-(overwhemingly) Smith. Italians were a bit less Dem, with Germans being the most GOP.

Wouldn't that have had as much to do with where they tended to live (Midwest and Great Plains) as anything else?

In 1920 it would have had almost everything to do with Woodrow Wilson and WWI. According to Booth Fowler's Wisconsin voting book, he estimated the German Catholic vote in Wisconsin to have swing about 80 points toward the GOP between 1916 and 1920.

[Thunderbird is the word]

I don't have solid evidence to back it up but I believe that Italian Catholics always tended to lean more Republican then the Irish. The GOP coalition in New York and Boston tended to be WASPs and Italians. To answer the original question 1920 and 24 are very likely, also 1888 is possible because IIRC a lot of Irish-Catholics backed Harrison over the tariff issue because they saw it as hurting the British economy.