Paid for by Mendelson for Council 2010
4119 W Street, NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20007
Sharon Ambrose, Chair
Dan Weddeburn, Treasurer
A copy of our report is filed with the Director of Campaign Finance.
Muslim Democratic Caucus of the District of Columbia
1629 K Street, NW, Suite 300,Washington DC 20006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
CONTACT:
Talib I. Karim, Esq., (202) 256-0499 or Talib.Karim@gmail.com
Muslim Democratic Caucus of DC Official Straw Poll Results: Cheh, Fleming, & Gray Lead List of Top Vote-Getters
On Friday, August 20, the Muslim Democratic Caucus of DC held a candidates forum and held a straw poll to develop a consensus slate of candidates for the DC Democratic Primary elections, which end on September 14, 2010. An estimated 100 or more members of the District's Muslim community and others attended Friday's forum including Muslim lawyers, religious leaders, physicians, taxi drivers, parents, teachers, and students. Nearly all of the candidates (all but 4 of 25) on the Democratic ballot for the Primary elections attended the forum.
This was a truly historic gathering, according to Talib I. Karim, Muslim Democratic Caucus Chairman. "While candidates have spoken to the Muslim community in the past, this is the first such forum to attract virtually a complete pool of Democratic candidates as well as Muslims from nearly all of the congregations in the District's richly diverse Muslim community," states Karim. The event's venue, Howard University School of Law, was also historic, notes Karim. "Howard's Law School is the birthplace for the modern civil rights litigation strategy, which paved the way for the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision, the 1964 Voting Rights Act, and ultimately the election of President Obama" asserts Karim, who along with almost all of the District's recent Mayors (Adrian Fenty, Sharon Pratt, and Walter Washington) are Howard Law alumni.
Candidates receiving the greatest share of the Muslim straw poll vote in their respective balloting categories were: Councilmember Mary Cheh who received 100% of the votes cast for a candidate in the Ward 3 poll, DC U.S. Representative Candidate Nate Bennett-Fleming with 93%, and DC Council Chairman Vince Gray who earned 83% of the Mayoral straw poll vote, states Muslim Caucus Vice Chair Carl Thomas. Current DC Mayor Fenty, one of the two incumbents absent for the forum, failed to get a single vote from the Muslim community. Douglas Sloan barely managed to gain the endorsement of the Caucus after edging out veteran U.S. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton by a single-vote margin. "While we haven't always agreed with Ms. Norton, she's always kept her door open to us and in fact was the first, as I recall, who challenged us to form our Caucus as a way of getting involved with the Party," notes Thomas, an elected DC Democratic State Committee Member.
"Now our task is to make the Muslim community's endorsement matter," according to Amin Muslim, a DC government employee who serves as Secretary for the Caucus. "From now until September 14th, we intend to mobilize Muslims to volunteer for our slate of candidates to pass out flyers, for door knocking, phone banking, and other GOTV [Get Get Out the Vote]" states Muslim.
Muslim Democratic Caucus Official Straw Poll Results: August 20, 2010
Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives
Norton, Eleanor H. 49%
Sloan, Douglass 51%
Norton, Eleanor H. 49%
Sloan, Douglass 51%
Mayor of the District of Columbia
Alexander, Leo 11%
Brown, Sulaimon 00%
Fenty, Adrian 00%
Gray, Vincent 83%
Johnson, Ernest 05%
Chairman of the Council
Brown, Kwame R 58%
Douglas, Dorothy 17%
Orange, Vincent 23%
At-Large Member of the Council
Brown, Michael 14%
Mendelson, Phil 71%
Ray, Clark 14%
Brown, Michael 14%
Mendelson, Phil 71%
Ray, Clark 14%
Ward 1 Member of the Council
Graham, Jim 07%
Smith, Jeff 71%
Weaver, Bryan 21%
Ward 3 Member of the Council
Cheh, Mary 100%
Ward 5 Member of the Council
Hunter, Delano 06%
McDuffie, Kenyan 18%
Thomas Jr., Harry 75%
Turner, Tracey D 00%
Ward 6 Member of the Council
Robinson, Kelvin J. 71%
Wells, Tommy 28%
Robinson, Kelvin J. 71%
Wells, Tommy 28%
U.S. Shadow Representative
Bennett-Fleming, Nate 93%
Panetta, Mike 06%
Background: The Muslim Democratic Caucus of the District of Columbia was formed with the support of the DC Democratic State Committee in 2008, during the historic election of President Barack Obama. Since then, the Muslim Caucus of DC has events including caucus meetings in conjunction with the DC Democratic Party conventions, drawing scores of Muslim business leaders, religious leaders, and others from throughout the District. It is estimated that one out of five DC residents is Muslim and/or lives in a household with Muslims. According to Islamic tenants, Muslims participating in democratic elections are encouraged to reach a consensus on candidates to support and vote as a bloc. The recent political engagement of DC�s Muslims comes in the wake of the national debate over religious freedoms sparked by plans for an Islamic cultural center in New York City.
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Bennett-Fleming, Nate 93%
Panetta, Mike 06%
Background: The Muslim Democratic Caucus of the District of Columbia was formed with the support of the DC Democratic State Committee in 2008, during the historic election of President Barack Obama. Since then, the Muslim Caucus of DC has events including caucus meetings in conjunction with the DC Democratic Party conventions, drawing scores of Muslim business leaders, religious leaders, and others from throughout the District. It is estimated that one out of five DC residents is Muslim and/or lives in a household with Muslims. According to Islamic tenants, Muslims participating in democratic elections are encouraged to reach a consensus on candidates to support and vote as a bloc. The recent political engagement of DC�s Muslims comes in the wake of the national debate over religious freedoms sparked by plans for an Islamic cultural center in New York City.
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-- Talib I. Karim, Esq. Attorney at Law - Writer Phone: (202) 256-0499 Email: Talib.Karim@gmail.com
