Politics

Marco Rubio was a Mormon once

Alex Pappas Political Reporter
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You may know Florida Sen. Marco Rubio as a Catholic, but it was revealed Thursday that he was actually baptized as a Mormon.

The revelation was first reported by the website BuzzFeed. Rubio’s spokesman Alex Conant confirmed the story.

Reporter McKay Coppins wrote that, “Rubio was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with his family at around the age of eight, and remained active in the faith for a number of years during his early youth.”

Rubio, the popular freshman Republican, is often listed as a favorite vice presidential nominee for any Republican in 2012 — especially for presidential candidate Mitt Romney, whose Mormon faith is well-known.

Coppins writes that, “Rubio’s Mormon roots could further complicate that calculation,” noting that, “vice presidential candidates are traditionally chosen to provide ethnic and religious balance to a ticket.”

Conant told The Daily Caller on Thursday that Rubio was Mormon from about the ages of 8 to 11.

He said Rubio received his first communion as a Catholic in Las Vegas in 1984 before the Rubio family moved to Miami in 1985.

*This post has been updated to clarify the time period when Rubio joined the Catholic church.

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