What role did CAIR and Muslim civic groups play in supporting mayoral campaigns in the 2021–2025 elections?
Executive summary
CAIR and allied Muslim civic groups functioned primarily as organizers, mobilizers, and defenders of Muslim civic participation in mayoral contests from 2021–2025—investing in voter education, turnout operations, local coalitions and post‑election analysis rather than formal candidate endorsements by the national CAIR 501(c) entity [1] [2]. Their activity ranged from building local voter projects and coalition outreach to documenting and countering Islamophobic attacks that targeted Muslim mayoral candidates, most visibly during the 2025 New York City contest [3] [4] [2].
1. Civic infrastructure builders, not official endorsers
Across the period CAIR’s national arm emphasized nonpartisan voter education and turnout: urging American Muslims to vote in state and local elections and framing its role as empowering and informing Muslim voters rather than endorsing candidates, consistent with its 501(c) status [1] [2]. That posture coexisted with CAIR Action and other affiliated entities that engage in more overt political advocacy, but public CAIR materials repeatedly described their core activity as civic engagement, directories of elected officials, and election analysis rather than campaign financing or formal endorsements by the charity itself [2] [5].
2. Local coalitions and voter projects moved real votes
In cities with concentrated Muslim populations, Muslim civic groups organized targeted voter projects: the New York Muslim Voter Project (NY‑MVP) was explicitly created to educate and mobilize Muslim voters on issues such as rank‑choice voting and candidate information, demonstrating how local organizing translated into campaign impact on mayoral ballots [3]. These grassroots networks, often including CAIR chapters, provided voter outreach, webinars and resources that increased awareness and turnout in municipal races across multiple cycles [3] [6].
3. Measurable mobilization and post‑election analysis
CAIR and CAIR Action released exit‑poll data and victory tallies that both documented and publicized Muslim turnout and candidate success—reporting high levels of support for some mayoral candidates (notably 97% of surveyed Muslim voters for Zohran Mamdani in New York) and claiming dozens of Muslim electoral wins nationwide in 2025, a framing that amplifies political clout even where the organization did not officially endorse [2] [7]. The organizations also planned directories and civic education initiatives aimed at sustaining momentum into subsequent cycles, signaling an institutional investment in electoral infrastructure [5].
4. Defense against and documentation of Islamophobia in mayoral contests
CAIR chapters moved beyond turnout to act as watchdogs and defenders when mayoral campaigns triggered anti‑Muslim attacks: CAIR‑NY released or highlighted research documenting tens of thousands of Islamophobic posts during the 2025 NYC mayoral race and urged platforms and officials to act, positioning the group as both a protector of candidates and a shaper of the public narrative around those contests [4]. Local CAIR leaders publicly contextualized backlash against Muslim candidates as part of a broader pattern of post‑9/11 exclusionary rhetoric, thereby attempting to neutralize attacks and mobilize sympathetic voters [8] [9].
5. Complementary Muslim civic actors amplified influence
Other organizations and local leaders complemented CAIR’s work: groups like Emgage and municipal leaders in places such as Dearborn and Hamtramck provided candidate recruitment, turnout operations and community organizing that helped elect Muslim mayors in 2021 and beyond, showing a distributed ecosystem rather than a single‑actor influence model [6] [10]. CAIR often acted within coalitions or celebrated wins after the fact, indicating collaboration with other civic actors rather than unilateral campaign control [10] [5].
6. Controversies, scrutiny and competing narratives
The role CAIR played attracted pushback and scrutiny: public figures and outlets accused CAIR of being a major backer of certain campaigns, and conservative commentary flagged alleged political entanglements or questioned ties—charges CAIR has contested while continuing to emphasize nonpartisan civic engagement; at the same time, scrutiny of the group intensified in 2025 amid broader national debates about advocacy and foreign policy [11] [12]. Reporting and local CAIR statements make clear that while CAIR and Muslim civic groups materially boosted organization, turnout and defense against bigotry, claims that they directly controlled mayoral campaigns exceed what the cited materials substantiate [2] [3].