The re-election of President Donald Trump held many surprises to pollsters, including that 56% of Catholic voters supported Trump, while only 41% supported Harris. According to the Washington Post, 52% of Catholics supported President Joe Biden in the 2020 election, compared to 47% for President Trump. This is a notable shift, and as Catholics, we shouldn’t just wonder “why” it happened; we should consider what this trend is revealing about the needs of our people and how the Church can better engage our culture.
A call for virtuous masculinity
One of the most visible trends in this election has been the support Trump garnered from young men. Men between the ages of 18 and 29 turned to Trump decisively this election. This demographic voted by a 15% margin for Joe Biden in 2020. In 2024, young men shifted 30 percentage points to the right, going for Trump by a margin of 16%, according to the Wall Street Journal.
This generation is searching for something they aren’t finding in the broader culture. In an era where masculinity is often criticized or misunderstood, young men are looking for models of strength and purpose. Many were drawn to Donald Trump’s platform for his message of confidence and boldness. And while the Church’s vision of masculinity differs from political displays of power, it’s clear that young men are hungry for strong leadership — and this is a need we should take seriously.
As a Church, we have an opportunity and a responsibility to guide young men toward a vision of masculinity that is rooted in virtue and sacrifice. The saints, virtuous fathers, and selfless leaders in our history have shown us what it means to be men who image Christ. We need to model this for our young men, giving them examples that they can look up to, not only as followers but as leaders called to defend and protect their families, their faith and their parish communities. Our youth programs and seminaries have to respond to this need by preparing men to be loving fathers, strong protectors and holy priests and religious who embrace true leadership. The search for confidence and boldness among young men is a powerful sign that the Church must step forward and nurture virtuous masculinity.
Refocusing the pro-life movement
During the 2024 presidential election, a major part of Kamala Harris’s campaign centered on abortion rights, while Trump’s platform highlighted economic and immigration issues. The Catholic vote did not seem primarily motivated by pro-life concerns this year. This may seem surprising, but the context of post-Dobbs America offers an explanation. With Roe v. Wade overturned, the focus of the pro-life movement has naturally shifted to the state level, where grassroots efforts are more effective in securing pro-life gains. In this election, we saw three states pass significant pro-life legislation, indicating that local activism is where the pro-life cause can make the most substantial impact.
This shift doesn’t diminish the importance of the pro-life cause for Catholics, but it suggests that the faithful are realizing the battle is now less about national elections and more about supporting pro-life efforts in local communities. This change calls us to adapt our advocacy to the new reality, continuing to support pro-life leaders on the national stage while putting even more energy into state-level progress. For Catholics, this means becoming involved in local policies and initiatives that protect life, providing resources to pregnancy centers, supporting legislation, and praying for the unborn in our parishes. In a post-Roe America, our fight is far from over; it has simply found a new battlefield.
Rebuilding working families
Given the powerful turnout of working-class voters who are deeply concerned about the economy, we should conclude that their support for Trump reflects a dissatisfaction with current policies that are not addressing the disintegration of their communities. As Catholics, we recognize that at the heart of every thriving community is the family. The Church teaches that the family is the “first natural society” and the foundation of all social life. It is within the family that people learn love, solidarity, commitment, and justice.
The working-class family, however, is facing enormous challenges. Financial instability, broken marriages, addiction, and isolation are eroding the very fabric of family life. Dignified, stable jobs that allow fathers to provide for their families are increasingly competitive. For many in the working class, the family unit is no longer the supportive, stable environment it was meant to be.
The Church must respond to this crisis with action, offering concrete support to families through programs that promote family bonding, financial literacy, counseling (including career counseling) and community-building. We also need to advocate for policies that provide real support to working-class families, recognizing that the well-being of a society depends on the well-being of its families.
The Church can be a light and a refuge for families in turmoil. By promoting the sanctity and importance of family life, we can help strengthen the bonds of community that have been worn thin in so many places.
We must take seriously the trends of the 2024 election and respond to the challenges it presents. Failure to do so will result only in a failure of evangelization and missed opportunities to spread the Gospel.
