Scalia’s Supreme Court vacancy draws much public interest, unlike past open seats
Such high levels of interest and engagement weren’t common in past Supreme Court nomination battles.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Religion
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U.S. religious groups and their political leanings
Mormons are the most heavily Republican-leaning religious group in the U.S., while a pair of major historically black Protestant denominations are two of the most reliably Democratic groups.
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Near-record number of primaries this year, but not quite as early
All but five states will hold at least one primary this year, cementing the primary’s dominance over the older caucus system in the presidential nominating process. But compared to 2008, the last time both parties had open nomination contests, the voting started later this year and is a bit more spread out.
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What voters want in a president today, and how their views have changed
The presidential nomination contests are heating up and both parties’ 2016 fields have narrowed. And since it’s also Presidents Day weekend, it’s a good time to consider what voters want in a president, regardless of which candidate they may support.
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Concern for Christians in the Middle East helps drive historic meeting between Catholic, Orthodox leaders
A historic event within global Christianity is set to take place Friday as Pope Francis meets Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill in Cuba – the first-ever meeting between the leaders of the Catholic and Russian Orthodox churches since the Orthodox tradition broke away from Catholicism nearly 1,000 years ago.
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A snapshot of Catholics in Mexico, Pope Francis’ next stop
Mexico is home to not only the largest Spanish-speaking population in the world, but one of the biggest Catholic populations, too.
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Contested presidential conventions, and why parties try to avoid them
There hasn’t been a seriously contested nominating convention in decades, and a look at history helps explain why: Candidates who needed multiple ballots to get nominated usually didn’t go on to win the White House.
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Republicans Prefer Blunt Talk About Islamic Extremism, Democrats Favor Caution
Half of Americans say the next president should be careful not to criticize Islam as a whole when speaking about Islamic extremists, while four-in-ten want the next president to speak bluntly about Islamic extremists even if the statements are critical of Islam as a whole.
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Is Hillary Clinton religious? Republicans and Democrats have far different views
If Hillary Clinton ends up being the Democratic Party’s nominee for president, her politics won’t be the only thing many Republicans and Democrats disagree about during the coming campaign.
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Millions of young people in U.S. and EU are neither working nor learning
More than six years after the Great Recession ended, almost 10.2 million teens and young adults in the U.S. are neither working nor in school.
