Iowa Republicans braved the frigid cold tonight in search of a straight-talking candidate with religious conviction, while for Democrats the choice boiled down to a desire for change.
On the Republican side, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee benefited from the huge importance of faith to caucus-goers. Evangelical Christians accounted for a whopping six in 10 voters ”” 46 percent of whom supported Huckabee, more than double former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney’s 19 percent.
Nearly four in 10 Republican caucus participants said it matters “a great deal” that candidates share their religious beliefs, and Huckabee wins 56 percent in this group, with Romney and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., far behind at 11 percent apiece (85 percent in this group are evangelicals).
By contrast, among those who said sharing religious belief is not important ”” about a third of caucus-goers ”” Romney won 39 percent, and Huckabee just 11 percent.