Editing Christian Democratic Appeal (section)

== Electorate ==
The core electorate of the CDA are church members, both Catholics and Protestants. Part of the electoral decline can be attributed to [[secularisation]] (9–10 seats in the period 1970–2010), while church members increasingly have been voting for other (mostly non-religious) parties (10-14 seats in the period 1970-2010). Non church members at times also vote for CDA, with a record during the [[2002 Dutch general election|2002 general election]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://repository.ubn.ru.nl/bitstream/handle/2066/102623/102623.pdf|title=In hoeverre bepalen ontkerkelijking en gewijzigd stemgedrag onder kerkleden het aantal CDA-Kamerzetels?|language=nl|first1=Manfred|last1=Te Grotenhuis|first2=Tom|last2=Van der Meer|first3=Rob|last3=Eisinga|first4=Ben|last4=Pelzer|date=2012|work=Christen Democratische Verkenningen}}</ref> The CDA has been stated to be an [[issue ownership|issue owner]] of "[[Social norm|norms]] and [[Value (ethics and social sciences)|values]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://stukroodvlees.nl/zonder-eigen-kernwaarde-zwabbert-cda/|title=Zonder eigen kernwaarde zwabbert CDA|work=Stuk Rood Vlees|date=2019-02-14|access-date=2022-03-23|first=Tom|last=Van der Meer}}</ref>

=== 2021–2023 ===
Voter surveys held after the [[2021 Dutch general election|March 2021 general election]] and the [[2023 Dutch provincial elections|March 2023 provincial elections]] showed that the average CDA voter's self-placement on a left-right axis was slightly to the right of the average voter. They were slightly less supportive of euthanasia and climate policy. CDA voters were more opposed to immigration than the average voter in 2021, but this difference had disappeared by 2023. 2023 CDA voters also had more trust in political parties than the average voter. The average CDA voter was older than the average voter, at 63 in 2021 (compared to 55 among all voters) and 61 in 2023 (compared to 56 among all voters). Around 60% of CDA voters described themselves as religious, a proportion twice as high as the proportion among all voters. Around 60 to 70% of CDA voters lived in rural areas, compared to roughly half of all voters. CDA voters felt considerably more connected to other people than voters of other parties and, in 2023, were slightly happier about their life.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://stukroodvlees.nl/plaatjes-van-de-electoraatjes-2023-het-cda/ |title=Plaatjes van de electoraatjes 2023: het CDA |website=StukRoodVlees |date=27 October 2023 |accessdate=27 July 2024}}</ref>