Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Britain's Asian Voters May Hold Key to No. 10

   Britain's  one  million  voters of Asian extraction are poised to flex
   their political muscle

   Dave DeForest 05 May 2010

Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS

   Prime  Minister Gordon Brown in front of the official prime minister's
   residence at 10 Downing Street in London

   Observers  say  British-Asian  voters  could have an important role in
   determining  the  outcome  of  Thursdayâs  parliamentary  elections in
   Britain.

   Prime  Minister  Gordon  Brown,  the leader of the Labour Party, David
   Cameron  of the Conservative Party and Nick Clegg, the standard bearer
   for  the Liberal Democrats are running close in many political opinion
   polls.

   Muhammad  Anwar,  professor  of  Ethnic Relations at the University of
   Warwick,  says  the  narrowness  of the race has all three of the main
   parties  scrambling  to  appeal  to the nationâs one million voters of
   Asian  extraction.   In  a close election, Asian support could have a
   signifant impact on the outcome.

   âThis  time  I  think there is real competition between the three main
   political  parties  to  get  support  from  Asians  and  other  ethnic
   minorities,â Anwar said.

   Anwar,  a  longtime observer of British elections, says Asians will be
   important  in this election also because of the concentration of Asian
   voters  geographically  in  England and because of their traditionally
   high turnout rate.

   Anwar  says  the  concerns of British-Asian voters mirror those of the
   population  at  large.  âIt is generally education, economy, health,â
   he  said.   But  Anwar  said  British-Asian  Muslims are particularly
   concerned  about  the  wars  in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as civil
   liberties  issues  and  the  rise of âIslamophobiaâ and descrimination
   against Muslims.

   Anwar  said  he  believes  the Liberal Democrat Party is gaining Asian
   support  because of the Iraq war.  âTraditionally more Asians used to
   vote  for  [the]  Labor  Party  but  more  recently  I  think that has
   changed,â he said.

   Asians  are  also  better  represented in the roster of candidates for
   this election. âAll three main political parties have selected a large
   number of Asian candidates,â Anwar pointed out.

   âI  think  this  is a good sign of their integration in the mainstream
   politics and other institutions in this country,â he said.

   With the election contest as close as it is, British Asians may have a
   unique chance this time to influence the results.

.