U.S. Muslims Mobilize In 2006 Elections with Eye on 2008

October 31, 2006

Author: Omar Sacirbey

Source: Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life

http://pewforum.org/news/display.php?NewsID=11751

Congressional elections haven't meant much to Saadia Chaudhry, who, at 30, has never cast a midterm ballot. But this year Chaudhry is excited about voting in her suburban Maryland district, even though she admits -- with a slightly embarrassed laugh -- that she's not even sure who's running.

"I just know I'm voting for Democrats," Chaudhry said.

Muslim American voters like Chaudhry, angered by policies they say abuse their civil rights at home and kill and injure Muslims abroad, are expected to turn out in unusually high numbers this year, throwing their support overwhelmingly behind Democratic candidates, observers say.

The boiling frustration with the Bush administration coincides with unprecedented voter registration and get-out-the-vote campaigns in Muslim communities. Meanwhile, other Muslim voters have been energized by what they see as anti-Muslim rhetoric.