How do religious Muslims vote in America?

That’s a very interesting question. I doubt it’s discussed much, because they are such a small percentage of the population: less than 3%, I believe.

They only vote in elections where one of the candidates is Muslim, usually local races.

Shoot, it should be I assume the Muslim’s agree with the far right on social issue’s. I’m going to try and flag and change it. Sorry for the mistake.

@CaptainHarley is that true? So they don’t vote in presidential elections? Senate races? Governors? Just Mayors, Representatives, etc? How local is local?

Fixed. Thank you Mods. As you were people.

I would think that would vary across populations and sometimes by individual. Many Muslims live quiet, responsible lives, vote in all elections in which they are eligible, and pay their taxes just like the rest of us. The more fundamentalist the individual, the more they will vote for a fellow Muslim, rather than for an infidel. But that’s mostly supposition on my part.

They all voted for Obama, for obvious reasons…~

LOL! But of course! : D

I know two types of muslims, and have met probably a dozen or so of each. First is the type who are born to muslim immigrants and have lived all or most of their lives in the US. These are people who have been friends to me, sometimes close. They tend to vote democratic in my experience, and don’t share the very conservative views of their parents. The second type was people I met largely in college, who came over here for school from their home country. These ones seemed more conservative on a lot of issues, but we hardly ever really got to talking about politics (they seemed far more concerned with their education) so I honestly couldn’t tell you how they vote.

Then of course there’s the direct parents of my friends, couldn’t tell you how they vote.

@CaptainHarley Your ignorance of muslim people astounds me.

@tedd

LMAO! I love you too! : D

All I need to know about Islam I learned on 9/11/01

All I need to know about Americans I learned when we discussed the genocide perpetrated against the native americans in school.
And all I need to know about American Soldiers I learned when watching this video.

@ragingloli You should have put a warning on that. Good thing I closed the window before I saw it. That’s just horrifying.

Whatever.

@CaptainHarley oh, now I get it, you have no idea what you are talking about. Is that right?

Whatever you say, dude. I defer to your obviously superior intellect and prodigious education. I am, after all, a mere prole and couldn’t POSSIBLY know how to run my life as well as you know how to run it.

No, that is not what I mean. It seemed to me you don’t personally actually know that Muslims only vote in local elections. Where did you get your info from?

I corrected that statement in a later one. Please forgive me for making a mistake.

My apologies. I see it now. My mistake. But, one thing. I doubt there are many Muslims running for office. Muslims don’t often get the option to vote for Muslims I would guess. I rarely get to vote for someone who is my religion. Even if they are my religion I might not vote for them, but that is a different topic I asked a long time ago.

@CaptainHarley…sooo not much then, huh?
@JLeslie Muslims, imo, vote along different parties, actually – just like anyone, but it’d be good to find solid stats on that.

I always had the impression that Muslims kept to themselves, politically.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir I would guess the moderate and not very religiois Muslims vote a variety of different ways, but I’m thinking the religious ones might vote more as a group, similar to the Christian right and the Orthodox Jews. It just was perplexing to me since neither party seems to be a good fit for the very religious Muslims. The Israel thing is what I found to be the most confusing, and now of course the Mosque at Ground Zero craziness. The religious blacks I find also a weird fit, because they tend to agree with the far right on social issues, but vote Democrat. I didn’t have any assumptions when I wrote the question, I really have no idea what Muslims say concerning politics in general, except for a couple who are very Americanised, and not religious, friends of mine who vote Democrat in general, but I am not close friends with them, so I never discussed it at length.

@nullo what does that mean?

@JLeslie I am having trouble understanding why you think ‘moderate’ Muslims aren’t religious? Muslims are so because of their religion…I know some identify as Muslim and don’t practice the religion (like with some Jews) but mostly a Muslim is so because of Islam so I don’t think it’s right to separate…then again, I don’t think it’s right to generalize…I think economic and immigration status palys a role in how some Muslims vote.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir you might be right, I am not arguing. I guess maybe A better question might be how the religious leaders vote? I think moderate Muslims are different then very religious Muslims. I think the Sufi are more accepting of diversity and the plurality of America. Many of my friends fled their Muslim countries to come to America, because they don’t like living under religious law, or their lives were in danger in their countries of origin. It makes sense that economics and when they came to this country, or if they were born here, might be the biggest influence over their political affiliations, much like other groups.

I know you don’t like to stereotype, but this is not to be critical of a group, it is just stats and to understand the thinking behind it.

” Muslims’ Vote: Muslims voted in bloc for President Bush in the US presidential election 2000. There is no exit poll information available about the Muslim votes. Nevertheless, based on three unscientific surveys of Muslim voters, Muslims voted 70% to 90% in favor of Bush with a significant 34% voting for the first time. Muslims, therefore, became the only bloc vote for Bush. In Florida, the last battleground, there would not have been any battle without an estimated 60,000 votes which Florida Muslims asserted that they delivered in favor of Bush. There are more than 200 Muslim organizations and communities in Florida.If we take an arbitrary criterion of 70% or more votes as a sign of a bloc vote by a community, then three of the four distinct minorities who voted in bloc did so for Gore in election 2000. African-Americans with 90%, Jews with 80%, and gays and lesbians with 70% voted for Al Gore according to the CNN exit poll statistics”

from here.

Interesting.

@JLeslie Yeah..I read that and thought ‘how Ironic.’

The way Republican operatives have been demonizing them lately, I would be amazed if they vote Republican in the future. Of course, such a small voting block to alienate when you can get such an effective scapegoat in the process.

@ETpro It is a quandary for them I think. What you wrote makes sense, except in a few local markets like Dearborn, MI. Although, I thought there were about 6 million Muslims in America, and there are only around 7 million Jews, and people care about our vote, so you never know. If they get rid of the electoral college, a diffierent topic I know, and I am not trying to go down that tangent, but if they get rid of it the numbers really become meaningless, two small to matter much.

@JLeslie The numbers are sometimes inflated by Muslims seeking greater political clout and sometimes by those seeking to make their fear mongering more effective, but surveys done scientifically place the population in the USA at between 2 and 2.8 million.

I think all the talk of Sharia Law being about to overtake us is pretty silly. It wouldn’t stand a chance at the ballot box, and there is that little matter of the Constitution and its wall of separation between church and state. Funny that the same Cons who are fear mongering about impending Sharia Law have been driving for decades to institute religious law of their own and claim that the First Amendment doesn’t prohibit doing so.

@ETpro interesting about the tally of how many Muslims in America. And, yes of course it is idiotic for the far right Christians not to realize that allowing religion onto the government allows religion into the governemnt. When you live in a corner of the country that 98% of the people in your community look like you, supposedly believe like you, and you aren’t too bright, those people seem to have no concept and don’t care about empathasizing with what it is like to be the minority, and what laws they would want if they were the minority. Adding to it they simply think they are right, they hold the key to God and heaven.

Ironically they usually vote Republican. The Muslims where I live I know do. Muslims are still conservative and agree with traditional Republicans on “family value” issues.

@Paradox I’m betting after all the demonization on Fox News and by Republicans campaigning, that may change in 2010.

Fluther needs Muslim jellies.

@mazingerz88 We say that often.