Two Muslim women are expected to be elected to Congress in the US midterm election next week, marking a historic first amid increasing anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant rhetoric.

 

Ilhan Omar, a Somali refugee, is likely to win a seat in the US House of Representatives in a densely-Democratic district in the Midwestern state of Minnesota, where she is the party's nominee.

 

Muslim American Olympian Ibtihajj Muhammad, who performed Hajj this year, told Arab News that during her pilmgrimage one of the best experiences was seeing people from different parts of the world unite in devotion to their faith. 

 

“It is something as a Muslim growing up and living in the US that you don’t get the opportunity to see. I feel I get that sense when I travel to the Middle East, particularly this trip to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj — it is something I will never forget,” she said.