Poor health and religiosity’s impact on voting behavior

The prevailing academic consensus is that poor health outcomes are directly linked to declining political participation; however, these consequences vary across distinct communities and populations. I argue that what is missing in the health and turnout literature is a perspective that studies how rates of poor health in U.S. counties influence turnout among the most and least religious counties. Religious adherence generates social capital, which is known to mitigate the negative consequences of the “costs” associated with voting, such as ill health. However, no study has examined these two factors together, along with their impact on turnout. My perspective, based on replication data from Cahill and Ojeda’s study of voter turnout in the 2016 election, suggests that health and religiosity should be studied together. As counties increase in religiosity, they appear to be less affected by the consequences of poor health.