Political Tide Turning

But would it bother him if a candidate didn't believe in God at all? He pauses. "Sure. Their good parts would have to far outweigh the bad side of the equation."

Carol Jackson, 57, of Falls Church refers deliberately to her traditional Anglicanism when considering her vote. She wants to know how candidates understand God and in what way that drives their actions. In 2000, she voted for Bush in part because she was moved by his story of salvation. "I took him at his word that he had dedicated himself to honor God and follow Christ in a cleaned-up, humble lifestyle."

But today Jackson, the director of a nonprofit affordable housing agency, looks at the Bush administration's "self-righteousness" abroad and a war-heavy budget and appraises him as "a little spiritually stuck."

As she puts it, if Bush were in her Bible study group, "I'd say: 'What have you done with Jesus Christ lately?' "

As the 2008 election approaches, she's trying to fend off the skepticism that led her to vote for Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) in 2004. She wants to hear candidates talk about their faith values, but feels a bit burned. "Less is more," she says.

When Jackson hears Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) talk about his faith, she hears him "trying to be all things to all people." If he had to stand before God today, she wonders, would he be able to articulate a clear statement of faith? "He doesn't say the words I'd hope he'd say, which is that there is a God in heaven who sacrificed his only son," she says.

A minute later, she says she could see herself voting for someone who isn't a true believer in Jesus, as long as he or she didn't pretend to be. "I like genuine integrity."

And while Jackson prays for people not to pursue same-sex relationships, she is angered by politicians such as Sen. Sam Brownback (Kan.), the former GOP presidential candidate, who oppose civil union-type protections, seeing the whole issue as God's affair.

A different Pew Research Center poll, released in September, underscores the blurriness between faith and voting. While a vast majority of respondents said they want a president with "strong religious beliefs," they also ranked front-runners Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Rudy Giuliani (R), former New York mayor, as the least religious.

Frank Newport, editor in chief of the Gallup Poll, said if a shift takes place at the voting booth among religious Americans, it could well be part of a general anti-Republican swing. "Republicans are doing less well, by every measure we have," he said.

Dianne Downs, who works for a missionary organization and coaches her church softball team, said she has lost faith in presidential candidates. They say they're driven by religious values, but then flip-flop on issues such as abortion and gay marriage, or don't attend worship services, said Downs, 45, of Germantown. She is looking for consistency.

Downs says she is turned off by Giuliani's divorces and Romney's previous support for gay rights and abortion. Those positions, to her, are un-Christian.