When I first ran for the Princeton school board, I did something I doubt my opponents ever considered. Before knocking on a single door, I asked respected leaders in my community to vouch publicly for my character. I wanted voters to hear from people they trusted that I was a mother, a neighbor, and a public servant, not a threat.

I lost anyway. In a down-ballot race, where many voters know little about the candidates beyond their names, I believe mine worked against me the moment voters read it.

My experience is not unusual. Since 9/11, Muslim American candidates have been held to an impossible standard: we must be flawless, and even then, we are viewed through the lens of terrorism. A new report from the Rutgers Center for Security, Race and Rights, Punished for Participating, documents this pattern across more than 31 case studies from 2001 to 2026. Despite historic gains (more than 255 Muslim Americans held elected office by this summer), Muslim candidates face a mainstreamed backlash built on conspiracy theories of a "Sharia" takeover, gendered stereotypes, political violence, and presumptions of antisemitism. The report's core finding is painfully simple: Muslims are punished for doing one of the most American things there is, running for office.

Islamophobia is not a Republican monopoly. Some self-styled centrists in the Democratic Party reach for the same smears, and for the same reason: they feel threatened by the rise of progressive Muslims who are winning.

Recent election cycles proved the point three times over.

In New York, Zohran Mamdani was branded "a jihadist candidate" by Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, while former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a fellow Democrat, mused on the radio about Mamdani in City Hall during "another 9/11." The Institute for Social Policy and Understanding's new toolkit on countering Islamophobia cites an analysis of more than 35,000 posts on X targeting Mamdani, with an estimated reach of 1.5 billion people. Seventy-two percent framed him as an extremist or terrorist.

In New Jersey's 12th Congressional District, which includes Princeton, Democratic candidate Dr. Adam Hamawy is a retired Army combat surgeon who once saved Senator Tammy Duckworth's life after she was wounded when her helicopter was shot down in Iraq. Dr. Hamawy was called a "radical extremist" by a Democratic primary rival over testimony he was subpoenaed to give as a witness in a trial three decades ago.

In Michigan, Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed has been called a "jihadist" by President Trump himself, who has taken to calling him "Muhammad," and Republicans are making false allegations about his associations with terrorist groups.

Here is the reason for hope: All three won their primaries, and Mamdani went on to become New York's first Muslim mayor. American voters are growing more sophisticated at spotting Islamophobia and are more willing to reject it.

But winning does not erase the toll. ISPU's research finds that 63% of American Muslims reported religious discrimination in the past year. Its Islamophobia Index, which measures how strongly the public endorses anti-Muslim stereotypes, jumped from 25 in 2022 to 33 in 2025. After the 2024 election, Muslims were the faith group most likely to fear for their personal safety.

Every Muslim candidate carries that weight onto the campaign trail, and the CSRR report warns that this hostility discourages other Muslims from running at all. Living under constant accusation is grueling.

What stuns me most is who is doing the accusing. Islamophobia is not a Republican monopoly. Some self-styled centrists in the Democratic Party reach for the same smears, and for the same reason: they feel threatened by the rise of progressive Muslims who are winning. There is nothing moderate about recycling the far right’s oldest slander. When a so-called centrist calls a........

© Common Dreams