Muslims are being called to participate in the mid-term elections, as they have been for every other election, under the excuse of fulfilling maslaha, being good citizens, and political participation. Participation in elections is one of the tools used to assimilate Muslims, to dilute their Islamic identity and to make perceived benefit as the measure for their actions instead of halal or haram.
بِسْمِ اللّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
Muslims are being called to participate in the mid-term elections, as they have been for every other election, under the excuse of fulfilling maslaha, being good citizens, and political participation. Following Allah’s saying:
وَتَعَاوَنُواْ عَلَى الْبرِّ وَالتَّقْوَى وَلاَ تَعَاوَنُواْ عَلَى الإِثْمِ وَالْعُدْوَانِ
“Cooperate in piety, do not cooperate in sin” (al-Maida: 2)
“The deen is nasiha… to Allah, His book, His prophet, the leaders of the Muslims and the Muslim Ummah.” (Muslim)
Keeping these in mind, we would like to explain a few things:
1) The reality of elections in America as who will be the successful candidate is conditioned by the acceptance of the big corporations and the powerful elite. Past experiences have shown that candidates care about their personal interests and the interests of the companies that support them with little regard to the average people. Hence, there is general voter apathy amongst Americans with a maximum of only 39% of the electorate participating in the elections over the past 36 years. The power of big corporations over candidates is clearly evident in the recent law lifting the limits set on funding by big corporations to support candidates. Thereby, giving these politicians the power to legislate what the big corporations, lobbyists, and special interest groups want.
2) Participation in elections is one of the tools used to assimilate Muslims, to dilute their Islamic identity and to make perceived benefit as the measure for their actions instead of halal or haram. This would eventually lead to the Hukm Shari’i being relegated only to the ibadat (worship, spirituality, etc), while maslaha (perceived benefit) would become the measure and the criteria for all other actions. The Islamic concepts and values would be replaced by kufr concepts and values. As time goes by, Muslims would see no problem exposing their awrah, selling prohibited items, giving Wala’ (support and friendship) to disbelievers, accepting homosexuality, and turning a blind eye to the rest of the major sins.
3) Muslims have participated in elections, both in the US and around the world. To see if any success was achieved, we must ask the right questions. Has this brought any khair (good) to the Muslims? Has it changed our reality? Has voting for Clinton, Bush, or Obama changed the situation of the Muslims? Or did it lead to more destruction, humiliation, occupation, intimidation, and killing of Muslims? Did voting for governors, senators, or congressmen change the picture about Islam and Muslims, or did the hatred and demonization against Islam and Muslims increase? Do the Muslims elected to office present Islamic laws, ideas, and values to the kuffar, or do they accept the kufr laws and values and present them to the Muslims? After so much effort spent by Muslims, why is it that candidates compete with each other to insult, demonize, and oppose the very simple rights that Muslims have to build masajid? Muslims have the right to ask, what is the real benefit that is being claimed to push Muslims to vote. Indeed, the real benefit is only that which Allah has defined as benefit for us because the human mind on its own cannot determine what is beneficial or harmful. Allah says:
وَعَسَى أَن تَكْرَهُواْ شَيْئًا وَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ وَعَسَى أَن تُحِبُّواْ شَيْئًا وَهُوَ شَرٌّ لَّكُمْ وَاللّهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنتُمْ لاَ تَعْلَمُونَ
“… it may be that you dislike a thing which is good for you and that you like a thing which is bad for you; Allah knows but you do not know.” (Al-Baqara: 216)
4) Voting is giving a candidate the power of attorney to rule on your behalf. In this case, it is authorizing someone to legislate or rule by kufr on your behalf. It means to give someone the power to make laws instead of Allah, denying His (swt) sole right to make laws that manage our lives. It is forbidden for any Muslim to vote for a Muslim or a non-Muslim to rule and legislate kufr laws. And it is very clear that the laws in America are not extracted from the Quran and Sunnah, and they contradict Islam and its basis. The Shari’i evidences have been very clear about prohibiting ruling by kufr. Allah says:
وَمَن لَّمْ يَحْكُم بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللّهُ فَأُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْكَافِرُونَ
“Whosoever does not rule by what Allah has revealed, such are the disbelievers” (al-Maida: 44)
The word “rule” here means the one who has the authority to make the rules and implement it whether he is a president, senator, etc. Allah also says:
وَأَنِ احْكُم بَيْنَهُم بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللّهُ وَلاَ تَتَّبِعْ أَهْوَاءهُمْ وَاحْذَرْهُمْ أَن يَفْتِنُوكَ عَن بَعْضِ مَا أَنزَلَ اللّهُ إِلَيْكَ
“Rule between them by what Allah has revealed, and do not follow their vain desires. And be careful that they don’t deviate you from that which Allah has revealed unto you” (al-Maida: 49)
This is a firm command from Allah to His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم and to the Muslims after him about the obligation to rule only by that which Allah has revealed. Allah also says:
فَلاَ وَرَبِّكَ لاَ يُؤْمِنُونَ حَتَّىَ يُحَكِّمُوكَ فِيمَا شَجَرَ بَيْنَهُمْ ثُمَّ لاَ يَجِدُواْ فِي أَنفُسِهِمْ حَرَجًا مِّمَّا قَضَيْتَ وَيُسَلِّمُواْ تَسْلِيمًا
“But no, by your Lord, they can have no Iman, until they make you (O Muhammad ) judge in all disputes between them, and find in themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept (them) with full submission.” (an-Nisa: 65)
This ayah illustrates that the issue of ruling and legislating is so critical that Allah makes accepting His ruling as a condition for Iman. It is the job of Congress to legislate on behalf of the people, i.e. make rules and laws. This is strictly prohibited in Islam because legislating rules is only the right of Allah. Allah says:
اتَّخَذُواْ أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِّن دُونِ اللّهِ
“They took their rabbis and their monks to be their lords besides Allâh…” (at-Taubah: 31)
In explaining the meaning of this ayah, at-Tirmidhi has recorded from Adi ibn Hatim:
“I came to the Prophet when he was reciting this ayah from surah Bara’a. And he (saw) said ‘they did not worship them, but if they (rabbis and monks) prohibited the allowed for them (Christians and Jews) and allowed the prohibited, and they obeyed them.”
Some have gone as far as to say that Yusuf (as) ruled by kufr, so consequently it is allowed for us to follow him. The truth is that Yusuf (as) only followed Allah’s commands and prohibitions, especially since he was a prophet and infallible. The ayat in surah Yusuf abundantly show that. Allah says:
قَالَ رَبِّ السِّجْنُ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مِمَّا يَدْعُونَنِي إِلَيْهِ
“Oh my Lord, prison is better for me than that which they call me to” (Yusuf: 33)
And Yusuf (as) is the one who said:
إِنِ الْحُكْمُ إِلاَّ لِلّهِ
“Indeed, the rule is only for Allah” (Yusuf:40)
So how is it possible to imagine that Yusuf (as) was ruling by kufr? It is also well known that the Shari’a of those before us is not valid for us today. And those who said otherwise make the “condition” that this is only valid if the issue does not contradict our Shari’a, i.e. if it is not abrogated. All the ayat that we have mentioned about the ruling by kufr are clear cut evidence about the prohibition of ruling by kufr.
5). Muslims must follow the rules of Islam, be courageous, dispel all fear from their hearts, and work to support their issues and defend their rights by all that which is allowed, e.g. demonstrations, rallies, conferences, etc. We must not be divided amongst ourselves, nor should we permit ourselves to be labeled as “moderate” or “extremist”, the labels created by the kuffar. It is our duty to carry Islam to the non-Muslims as the early Muslims did in Indonesia, to bring them from darkness to light, from distress to happiness and tranquility. It is our duty to work with those who work throughout the world to make Islam supreme and bring it back into life by establishing the Islamic State. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said:
“Then there will be Khilafah Rashidah on the steps of the prophethood…” (Ahmed)
And Allah says:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ اسْتَجِيبُواْ لِلّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُم لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ
“Oh you who believe, answer Allah and His Messenger when they call you to that which gives you life” (al-Anfal: 24)
Hizb ut-Tahrir America
18 Dhul-Qedah, 1431 A.H. / October 26, 2010 C.E.