US News
First Muslim in US Congress 'sends message'
By Pat Reber
Nov 8, 2006, 19:00 GMT

Washington - Democrat Keith Ellison, an African-American convert to Islam, Tuesday became the first Muslim ever elected to the US House of Representatives, where he will represent the largest city in the northern tier state of Minnesota.

Ellison was elected by a 56 per cent majority by the city of Minneapolis and some outlying suburbs, winning over three rivals for Minnesota's 5th Congressional District.

The district has been a safe haven for Democratic candidates since 1963, election returns showed.

'We believe his election will send a powerful message to the world about America's commitment to religious inclusion and tolerance,' said Nidad Awad, executive director of the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, an umbrella organization linking 11 Islamic organizations, before the vote.

Ellison easily won the four-way scramble after Representative Martin Sabo surprised Minnesota Democrats by announcing his retirement earlier this year.

The district includes affluent neighbourhoods, the University of Minnesota, and the downtown area, according to Minnesota Public Radio. It is also home to many Muslims, including refugees from civil war-plagued Somalia.

The race - one of hundreds across the US in the midterm election - was closely watched because a Muslim holding high public office in the US is quite rare.

With election results still trickling in across five time zones in the hard-fought mid-term battle for control of Congress, Democrats have recaptured the majority of the 435 seats in the House and the majority of state governorships from Republicans after a 12 year hiatus.

Unusually for mid-term elections, with a traditional focus on local issues, voters were driven by anger over the war in Iraq and disillusionment with six years of US President George Bush's presidency.

The outcome in the Senate, however, remained in the balance, with three seats - Virginia, Missouri and Montana - still left to be decided. Returns were still trickling in.

The highest elected office ever reached in the US by a Muslim is state senator. Larry Shaw, a black Muslim, has been a state senator in North Carolina since 1996. The last Muslim to seek a seat in Congress was Saudi Arabian-born US citizen Ferial Masri, who ran unsuccessfully in California in 2004.

Since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, Muslims in the US have suffered having their loyalty questioned. In the campaign, Ellison was blamed across the board of having relationships with terrorist organizations, and was criticized for his earlier work with the Nation of Islam.

Ellison grew up with his four brothers in a Catholic family in Detroit, Michigan, and converted to Islam when he was 19. After getting his law degree, he has served as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, representing a working-class district. About 75 per cent of his constituents are minorities.

He has taken a clear stand on central disputes over US policies. He has called the war in Iraq 'clearly the biggest blunder in US foreign policy since Vietnam' and has called for an immediate withdrawal of US troops from Iraq.

Ellison also wants to ease the path to citizenship for the estimated 12 million people living illegally in the US.