Mosque

Early voting is underway in Texas's midterms through Oct. 30, ahead of the Nov. 3 general election. Gov. Greg Abbott faces Democrat Gina Hinojosa, while in one of the most expensive nonpresidential races on record, Republican Ken Paxton battles Democrat James Talarico for U.S. Senate, with ad spending topping $442 million and Republicans outspending Democrats roughly three to one. Polls, including recent FOX News and New York Times/Siena surveys, have shown Talarico consistently ahead since September, raising the possibility Texas could elect a Democrat statewide for the first time since 1994. Trump made three campaign visits backing Paxton, who faces past fraud indictments and an impeachment acquittal. Prominent Texas attorney Thomas J. Henry, who had previously backed Paxton with a $600,000 super PAC donation, has now endorsed Talarico after meeting with him, a notable crossover in the closely watched contest.

At Texas Faith Fest, an annual event hosted by advocacy group Texas Values, Republican state lawmakers and pastors discussed policy proposals aimed at restricting Islamic religious practice in the state. During a panel titled "Don't Sharia My Texas," speakers called for banning public vouchers for Islamic schools, prohibiting halal food in prisons and other public institutions, and barring broadcasts of the Muslim call to prayer. Some panelists, including a Texas Values board member, questioned whether Islam should be recognized as a religion at all and said the goal was to make Muslims feel unwelcome enough to leave Texas.

The proposals follow Gov. Greg Abbott's earlier pledge to "fully ban sharia law in Texas" after controversy over a planned Muslim-centric development near Dallas. Muslims make up roughly 2% of Texas's population. Religious liberty scholars warned that government-sanctioned favoritism toward one faith could violate First Amendment protections and set a precedent threatening religious freedom broadly, while some lawmakers argued their proposals, such as banning all religious dietary accommodations, would apply neutrally across faiths.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 2664 on Friday, establishing 100-foot protective zones around the entrances of synagogues, churches, mosques and other houses of worship. Within these zones, individuals must stay at least eight feet from a congregant unless given consent before distributing leaflets, holding signs or engaging in protest activity intended to harass, obstruct, threaten or intimidate. Violations carry fines up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail, with steeper penalties for repeat offenses.

The law follows a violent pro-Palestinian protest last December at Los Angeles's Wilshire Boulevard Temple, where demonstrators blocked entry, damaged property and assaulted a security guard. Newsom signed the bill at that same synagogue, calling it part of broader efforts to protect religious communities amid rising antisemitism and hostility toward other faiths. The bill, introduced by Assembly member Rebecca Bauer-Kahan and backed by Jewish California along with Muslim, Sikh, Christian and Hindu groups, passed with bipartisan majorities. The Council on American-Islamic Relations opposed the measure, arguing it criminalizes peaceful protest and free speech.

Texas' rapidly growing Muslim population, estimated between 300,000 and 500,000 (up from about 140,000 in 1990), has become a flashpoint among Republicans, drawing national attention during the RNC's Midterm Convention in Dallas. GOP officials including Reps. Keith Self, Chip Roy, and Brandon Gill, congressional candidate Brandon Herrera, and state Rep. Brian Harrison are calling for legislative and congressional action against what they describe as Islamism and Sharia law, citing new mosque construction and Islamic development projects across the state.

Specific controversies include the EPIC City development in Josephine, which Attorney General Ken Paxton's office says is linked to alleged securities law violations, prompting Gov. Greg Abbott to halt construction; a McKinney mosque relocation approved by the city council that spurred a recall effort against local officials; and a planned Islamic campus expansion near Camp Bullis military base in San Antonio, which Roy wants federal officials to investigate. Advocacy groups and RNC attendees echoed concerns about assimilation and Western values, while some attendees pushed back, saying local voters should decide the issue.

Sheikh Ibrahim Yassine, a resident scholar at the Islamic Institute of America in Dearborn Heights, Michigan, said in an August 14 sermon that Muslims will "build America" on a foundation of Islamic moral civilization, contrasting it with what he called an American culture obsessed with "worldly life" and technology. The remarks, documented and translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), also targeted President Trump, whom Yassine described as having a "sick mentality" over past comments about civilizational conflict.

MEMRI has tracked a pattern of controversial sermons at the institute. Yassine previously mocked Trump over Iran's succession process and praised the late Ayatollah Khamenei, while fellow scholar Mohammad Qazwini celebrated Sen. Lindsey Graham's death and urged prayers against Trump. Institute founder Hassan Qazwini has also pushed congregants to vote for Muslim political candidates and cast Zionist influence in elections as a threat to counter. The institute has additionally hosted memorials for Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah.

A Winston-Salem, North Carolina woman has been indicted in connection with the May 18, 2026 mass shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego, Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O'Neill announced. FBI and local law enforcement officials joined O'Neill to detail the charges, though further specifics on the woman's alleged role have not yet been released.

The shooting killed three men, including a longtime mosque security guard credited with limiting the attack's toll. Two teenage suspects, ages 17 and 18, died by suicide in a vehicle near the scene after fleeing a home where a parent had reported one of them missing and armed. Investigators found evidence of "generalized hate rhetoric" and are treating the case as a hate crime, though no specific threat had been made against the center beforehand. The indictment marks the first known criminal charge tied to the attack beyond the deceased shooters, raising questions about who else may face prosecution as the investigation continues.