THE Muslim Council of Britain has released details of 31 marginal seats - including Keighley and Dewsbury - where Muslim voters are expected to have a “medium” or “high” impact.

The initiative is part of the MCB’s drive to encourage Muslim communities to vote, and has been supported by mosques and community leaders across the UK.

The analysis compares the number of Muslims of voting age in each constituency calculated by the MCB’s Research and Documentation Committee, updated population-by-constituency data from June 2018 and results of the 2017 General Election.

The methodology builds on the MCB analysis from the last election, which highlighted how seats considered “medium” or “high” impact swung to Labour significantly more than the remainder of the country.

In Keighley, which was won by Labour's John Grogan by 249 votes, the MCB says there are an estimated 5,158 eligible Muslim voters while in Dewsbury, where Paula Sherriff is defending a majority of 3,321, there are an estimated 8,632 eligible Muslim voters.

MCB secretary general Harun Khan said: “As active participants in our society, Muslims – in all their diversity – can play a significant role in what may become a close election, and we hope that the parties listen and reach out to Muslim communities across the country to engage on issues of concern.”

Zara Mohamed, Assistant Secretary General at the MCB, added: “It’s important that we all – young and old – realise our potential to make change through political participation. Our votes matter. Be it the mosque, community organisation, student society or women’s group, each of us can make a difference. This is as true in Ealing as in Edinburgh – we all have a responsibility to encourage as many people register to vote.”

The MCB data supplements a broader non-partisan General Election strategy, focussing on increasing Muslim voter participation and ensuring communities engage deeply with the election debate. This includes identifying issues of concern for Muslim communities through pledges and a broader policy platform, encouraging its affiliate network of mosques and associations to promote voter registration and facilitating the UK’s first ever National Muslim Voter Registration Day on Friday.

Taking part in this nationwide campaign are a number of mosques and community organisations, including Finsbury Park Mosque in North London, Birmingham Central Mosque, and Masjid Alhikmah and Community Centre in Aberdeen.

Muslim Council of Britain is the country’s leading British Muslim representative body.