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Arab-Americans Set to Play Key Role in US Election

Arab-Americans are poised to play a critical role in the US presidential election on Tuesday. Numbering about 4 million, they're heavily concentrated in several battleground states — including Florida, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia — where every vote will count in a race that many consider too close to call, writes Vivian Salama.
Arab-American election worker Aisha Maisari (L) watches as voter Samraa Luqman (R) casts her vote in the U.S. presidential election at a polling station in southwest Dearborn, Michigan November 2, 2004. Election workers said the lines were long all day with voters. Dearborn has one of the largest arabic speaking populations outside the Middle East. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook  RC/JDP

Arab-Americans are poised to play a critical role in the US presidential election.   Numbering about 4 million, they're heavily concentrated in several battleground states — including Florida, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia — where every vote will count in a race that many consider too close to call.

A mid-September survey of 400 voters conducted by the Arab American Institute revealed that President Barack Obama leads Republican candidate Mitt Romney among Arab-Americans, 52% to 28%, with 16 percent of Arab Americans still undecided. This compares to the 67% to 28% lead Obama held over John McCain among Arab Americans in 2008, signaling a potential loss of some 100,000 voters for Obama, according to AAI.

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