Thirty-five percent of respondents say they considered themselves conservatives, while 34 percent say they are politically independent. Just 16 percent of Muslims say they are liberals. This despite the fact that 41 percent of the respondents say they are more in sympathy with the political stances of the Democratic Party. Fifty-six percent say they voted in the last elections. (This is a higher rate than the national average.)  Other survey results included the following highlights:

• 55 percent of respondents say they believe abortion should be prohibited except to save the life of the mother.
• 59 percent believe local school systems require a number of reforms.
• 59 percent support increased government involvement in health care.
• 72 percent believe gun laws should be more restrictive.
• 96 percent believe that Muslims should get involved in local and national politics.

The demographic profile revealed by the survey showed that:

• 23 percent of respondents say they owned their own business.
• 52 percent have a graduate degree.
• 38 percent reported a household income of more than $75,000.

Muslims from more than 40 different states responded to the survey, with the most responses coming from California, Virginia, Texas, Illinois, Maryland, Ohio, Michigan, and New York. (In order from greater to lesser number of responses.)

“This survey shows that the American Muslim community is politically, geographically and economically diverse. It is also clearly enthusiastic about participating in the debate on issues of importance to this society,” said CAIR Research Director Dr. Mohamed Nimer. Nimer added that Muslims might be potential swing voters in politically-important states. There are an estimated six million Muslims in America and some 1.2 billion worldwide. Islam is one of the fastest growing religions in America.

EDITOR’S NOTE - To receive a copy of the survey results, call 202-659-2247, fax 202-659-2254 or e-mail
cair1@ix.netcom.com.