Shafaqna English- Republicans are increasingly portraying Muslims as a major issue in the 2026 US midterms.
Last week, Republican Vice President J.D. Vance accused Abdul El-Sayed, a Muslim Democrat running for the US Senate in Michigan, of being “very, very evil” and claimed he defends terrorism.
In Texas, Republican Governor Greg Abbott, in a tight race for re-election, criticised a proposed Muslim-led development project and called for an investigation into alleged efforts to establish “sharia courts, ” a claim that developers and civil rights groups dispute.
Meanwhile, in Alabama- where Muslims comprise less than 0.5% of the population- US Senator Tommy Tuberville, a Republican candidate for governor, warned that “the enemy is inside the gates, ” referring to what he described as radical Islam.
Muslims number about 5.5 million people in the United States, up from 2.4 million in 2007, according to Pew Research Center. They account for about 1.6% of the country’s population.
Over the past year, Muslims have gained more political power than at any point in recent memory.
Sources: Straits Times