Nearly three quarters of American Muslims like the job President Obama is doing — by far the largest backing of any religious group, a new survey released Friday reveals.
The Gallup Poll, conducted from January through June, found that 72 percent of Muslims approve of Obama’s performance, compared to 55 percent of Jews, 44 percent of Catholics and 37 percent of Protesants.
Mormons were least supportive — only 18 percent gave Obama a thumbs up and 78 percent offered a thumbs down.
The Muslim support should not come as a surprise given Obama’s Muslim roots. Though a practicing Christian, Obama’s father, Barack Obama Sr., was a Muslim from Kenya.
“Many other Americans have Muslims in their families or have lived in a Muslim-majority country — I know, because I am one of them,” Obama said in 2009.
Muslims, however, represent only a small segment of the voting population.
“The United States remains a predominately Christian nation, with roughly half of Americans identifying with a Protestant religion and another other quarter identifying as Catholics. Thus, the opinions of these Christian groups are by far the most influential in determining Obama’s overall ratings,” Gallup said.