Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has issued a surprise statement, ending months of speculation by announcing a general election on 4 July. Will Muslims turn out and be counted? [1]
Coincidentally, hundreds of Muslims from across the UK — including Belfast, Glasgow, Cardiff, London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Luton, Manchester, Batley, and more — had convened last Saturday to discuss the Muslim strategy in the run-up to the election as part of The Muslim Vote campaign.
There were representations from community activists, local leaders, Imams, independent parliamentary candidates, and their campaign teams.
The event sought to provide a forum for debate and discussion, as well as increasing political literacy and confidence.
So what is The Muslim Vote?
The Muslim Vote is a relatively new movement — from late 2023.
It has been pioneered and supported by a collaborative effort between many individuals and organisations, in response to the condemnable stance of the mainstream political parties regarding the crisis unfolding in Gaza.
Such supporting institutions and groups include the Islamic Finance Guru (IFG), The Thinking Muslim, Muslim Engagement and Development (MEND), the Muslim Association of Britain (MAB), Muslim Council of Scotland, Muslim Council of Wales, Islam21c, and more.
Its underlying concern is “the political future of our community” with a five-election plan spanning 25 years, inshāAllah.
What was discussed at the meeting?
The day consisted of panel discussions and contributions from Dr. Anas Altikriti of the Cordoba Foundation, and Salma Yaqoub, former Respect Party leader. We also heard from Sufyan Ismail, the Founder of MEND.
They shared an overview of the history of Muslim activism, campaigning, and influencing efforts with respect to political and governmental engagement. They also looked at successes, failures, and lessons.
This was followed by other panel discussions, workshops, and networking opportunities with like-minded believers from around the country.
Britons go to the ballot box in just over a month
With a UK general election now around the corner, the aim of the campaign is to organise, co-ordinate, and mobilise Muslim communities across the UK. The key is to ensure the Muslim vote is not taken for granted.
Gaza has also played an instrumental role for “organisations to put their ego aside” and “become a smaller cog as part of a bigger machinery”, as mentioned by Sufyan Ismail. This signifies a positive step for the UK Muslim activist scene with organisations feeling the need to put differences aside in order to co-ordinate and work together.
This has become even more apparent when lay Muslims and scholars with different theological and legal backgrounds have put aside differences to bring their communities together.
In fact, the independent success in Muslim majority areas, especially in parts within Yorkshire, was put down to the role Imams have played on the pulpit and in their calls to their congregations to not “waste their vote”.
Elevating the impact of Muslim voices through voting
The Muslim Vote seeks to attach a “higher value to the Muslims’ vote”, as mentioned by Summaya Ahmed (MAB), and they believe that it can only happen if Muslims in their constituencies work together, co-ordinate, and mobilise behind a unified strategy.
Strategies could differ from constituency to constituency, depending on local factors, but the principles remain the same. That is to vote for a candidate who is aligned with noble values with respect to Palestine and other policy issues, as well as punishing the two main parties.
The national town hall held in Aston was an unprecedented achievement, bringing together Muslims in one room to take lessons from history, begin to develop electoral strategy, and form a platform for networking.
As one attendee put it,
“Muslims will soon be 15 per cent of the UK population… this movement is the start of a 25-year, five-election cycle strategy.”
It is not going away, inshāAllāh.
“Dīn without politics will lead to politics without dīn”
The failure of the Conservatives and Labour to truly represent our interests has fuelled this movement.
It will continue, whether it be via the form of independent candidates, or holding hustings with existing candidates. And who knows what the future holds, perhaps even “fixing” the existing political parties or establishing new ones?
The mood in the room on Saturday made it clear: Muslims have no option but to get more active in politics, recover from political apathy, and not let any party take our votes for granted.
Renowned scholar and jurist Shaykh Dr. Haitham al-Haddad led a scholarly discussion and Q&A with Dr. Salman Butt to conclude proceedings. He provided religious guidance to activists and community leaders and aptly summarised the day by quoting the late Algerian scholar Mohamed Bachir El Ibrahimi:
“Dīn without politics will lead to politics without dīn.”
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- Palestine becomes potential dealbreaker in Batley and Spen by-election
Source: Islam21c
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