Muslim leaders urge turnout in Texas, Michigan as El-Sayed, Talarico seek Senate seats
Islamic scholar Yasir Qadhi called voting an “ethnic” and religious duty, as Breitbart’s Neil Munro argued that Muslim voter mobilization could help shape close Senate races.
Muslim religious leaders urged voters in their communities to turn out in Texas and Michigan ahead of the Nov. 3 Senate contests involving Democrats James Talarico and Abdul El-Sayed, describing political participation as a civic and religious duty, according to a Nov. 2 Breitbart report.
Texas-based Islamic scholar Yasir Qadhi — whom Breitbart’s Neil Munro described as an “apparent top U.S. leader of the dominant Muslim Brotherhood faction among U.S. mosques” — urged his followers in an Oct. 29 video to “vote for candidates that represent your interests and our interests.”
He specifically highlighted the “battle states of Texas and Michigan,” where he said there “are clear candidates that are calling for equality of all types of traditions to worship freely.” In Texas, Talarico is challenging Republican Ken Paxton, while in Michigan, El-Sayed is running against Republican Mike Rogers.
“We are undergoing perhaps the most important election season, perhaps of our entire lifetimes,” Qadhi said. “And it is imperative that we, as Muslims of this country, as American Muslims, we avail ourselves to the same rights, the same privileges, the same sense of civic engagement and civic duty as everybody else.”
He added a call to pray “and go to vote for the ummah,” using the Arabic term for the global Muslim community.
Activist Wajahat Ali, meanwhile, warned of a backlash within the Democratic Party. In a Nov. 1 X post cited by Breitbart, Ali wrote: “If, God forbid, Abdul loses, this will be a watershed moment in Democratic politics.”
“The fire will rise. It’s over,” he added. “People will be radicalized against corporate, pro-Israel Dems. There will be a reckoning. If, when, he wins, it will be a watershed moment. And that reckoning will still come.”
Ali’s post has drawn more than 4 million views.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), which describes itself as the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights organization, also amplified the push. In an Oct. 30 statement, CAIR urged every Muslim voter to visit Muslims.Vote, make a concrete plan to cast a ballot, and check registration and polling locations.
The group, which described its campaign as nonpartisan, reported reaching roughly 250,000 voters via texts across 10 states.
An Oct. 28 survey release from CAIR reported that 81% of Muslim respondents said they would definitely vote, while 9% said they probably would. Among respondents, 72% planned to support Democrats in their state’s November election, compared with just 6% who favored Republicans.
>> Report: How Islamic leaders see political office in America <<
Munro argued that Muslim communities, concentrated in pivotal areas and organized through mosques that blend social, civic, and political life, have demonstrated capacity for high turnout that can sway close races. The outlet drew historical parallels to Irish-American voting blocs that organized in cities such as Boston, New York, and Chicago a century ago, often with help from Catholic clergy.
Munro linked the resurgence of ethnic and religious voting blocs to an increase in immigration in recent decades. It argued that disputes over religion, abortion, racial equality, “transgenderism,” and immigration have increasingly overshadowed political divisions rooted in economic class.
“Nationwide, the huge post-2001 influx of Muslims has naturally created a new wave of unprecedented Islamic activists and candidates in the United States,” Munro wrote, pointing to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani as a beneficiary of Muslim voter mobilization and suggesting that similar efforts could boost other progressive candidates in the midterm elections.
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