Catholic vote is key for Bush, Kerry

I have noted articles and analysis of this before, but if a big chunk of undecided voters are Catholic, then we may still decide the election.

In an election year in which voters appear closely divided and a remarkable number have already chosen their candidates, polls show there are fewer "undecideds" than usual.

But "look at any good study of undecideds, and there's a big hunk of Catholics in that group. They're up for grabs," said John Green, a political scientist at the University of Akron and an expert on the relationship between religious affiliation and voting.

Moreover, Catholics are thickly settled in key battleground states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, where a swing of relatively few popular votes can reap a rich reward of electoral votes.