Democrats courting Catholics

The Democratic Party's intensifying efforts to reach out to Catholic voters will hit a high-water mark tonight, when party leaders turn to Virginia's newly installed governor to deliver the response to President Bush's State of the Union address.

Governor Timothy M. Kaine, a devout Catholic who spoke openly about his faith during his election campaign last year, will speak about his work as a Jesuit missionary in Honduras, said Delacey Skinner, a Kaine spokeswoman. Kaine said that experience during his time as a Harvard Law School student inspired him to enter public service.

After Democratic Senator John F. Kerry of Massachusetts -- the party's first Catholic nominee since John F. Kennedy in 1960 -- lost the Catholic vote to Bush, a Methodist, in the last presidential election, national Democrats want to recast the party's image. They say their positions on key issues like the Iraq war, immigration, the environment, and poverty are in synch with church teachings.

Until recently, most Catholic voters were loyal Democrats, dating back to President Franklin Roosevelt. Many defected to vote for Ronald Reagan in the 1980s, but Bill Clinton won them back in 1992 and 1996.

But Republicans aggressively courted the largely Catholic Hispanic vote, and stood against abortion and gay marriage, which the Vatican also opposes. The move paid dividends: Bush's 2004 reelection campaign won 52 percent of all Catholic voters, according to exit polls. Many Democrats acknowledge they must reach voters on so-called ''values" issues, and winning back Catholics is a priority.

The Boston Globe