The Alfred Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York is set to take place during the evening of Thursday, Oct. 17. The dinner is a fundraiser for Catholic charities, with many high profile political figures often attending.
Former President Donald Trump will be there. However, Vice President Kamala Harris has declined. Her campaign has said she has a scheduling conflict. Harris is slated to be in Wisconsin. The Archbishop of New York, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, has criticized Harris for not attending.
Catholics make up a large voting block in the country and will likely be key in swing states. A new poll, out this week from the National Catholic Reporter, has Trump with a five-point lead over Harris in the battleground states, 50% to 45%.
The survey comes from nearly 1200 Catholics in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Three out of four voters in that same poll said the economy is the most important issue. Immigration and the border came in at number two. Abortion/reproductive rights came in further down the list.
A poll, released in September by Pew Research, had Trump ahead of Harris 52% to 47% among Catholics nationwide. That would be a flip for Trump. Pew found that in 2020, Joe Biden, who is Catholic, narrowly won the Catholic vote.
Pope Francis raised some eyebrows recently when he said the American presidential race is a choice between two evils. He called both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris against life. The pontiff cited Trump’s policies on immigration and Harris’ views on abortion.