US elections 2020: About 69 percent American-Muslims vote for Biden, says exit poll survey

NEW YORK: Nearly 69 percent of Muslim voters cast their ballot for Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden while 17 percent supported President Donald Trump, according to a survey conducted by Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization in the US.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, released the results of its 2020 Muslim Voters Presidential Election Exit Poll on Tuesday.

CAIR's poll of 844 registered Muslim voter households found a high Muslim turnout with 84 percent reporting that they voted in the US election, with 69 percent voting for Biden and 17 percent for Trump.

CAIR said more than one million American Muslim voters turned out in "record-breaking" numbers this election cycle.

CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said the "Muslim community's significant ability to impact the results of numerous races across this country - including the presidential election - was recognized nationally."

CAIR Director of Government Affairs Robert S McCaw said there was no denying the role the Muslim community plays in local, state and national politics.

"Now is the time to hold the politicians we elected to office accountable to ensure that the civil and religious rights of all Americans are being upheld and protected," McCaw said.

Compared with the 2016 election, in which then-President-elect Donald Trump received 13 percent of the Muslim vote, Trump in 2020 received 4 percent more support.

According to Pew Research Center, there were about 3.45 million Muslims of all ages living in the US in 2017, and that Muslims made up about 1.1 percent of the total American population.