Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential bid enjoys widespread support from Somalis in Columbus and at Ohio State. Enthusiasm for Sen. Obama’s candidacy has led Somalis to volunteer for the Illinois Senator’s presidential campaign, which recently established a field office in the heart of Columbus’ Somali community.

“We do everything from transporting people, explaining issue differences, and helping with translation,” Ibrahim Muhammad, a junior in political science, said. Muhammad works as a field coordinator at the campaign office in Global Mall, a Somali supermarket on Morse Road.

Global Mall donated space to the Obama Campaign field office, which provides shuttles for early voters and conducts Get Out The Vote efforts for Sen. Obama in the Somali community, which includes about 20,000 eligible voters, according to The Somali Link, a Somali language newspaper.

“Somalis have come out and endorsed Barack Obama and Mary Jo Kilroy,” said Jereme Leazier, a senior in political science and volunteer for the Obama and Mary Jo Kilroy campaigns. “People have also come [to the field office], especially Somalis, asking how they can volunteer.”

Ahmed Mohamed, 33, owner of Global Mall and executive director of the Somali American Chamber of Commerce, said the field office’s purpose is “to make sure that Somali people participate in voting.” The SAAC also supported Obama during the Democratic primaries.

“The issues that really concern us are almost the same as any resident of Ohio or the United States: health-care, education, employment and home ownership,” Mohamed said. “In my own opinion and the opinion of many Somalis in central Ohio, I believe that Barack Obama has a better vision for this country.”

Mohamed said health-care reform and the economy are the most important issues for Somalis, many of whom are facing hard times. Obama’s proposals, such as universal health coverage, appeal to Somali voters, Mohamed said.

“Right now, people are struggling,” he said. “All the small business people I know don’t have health-care.”

Obama’s biography also attracts many in the Somalian community.

“He has a background that really pleases everybody in this community,” said Mahdi Takeelo, president of The Somali Link. “He is the son of an immigrant,” Takeelo said, referring to Obama’s Kenyan father, an economics student who won a scholarship to study at the University of Hawaii.

“There is a sense of pride that the man who’s running for president is of very close African heritage,” said Laura Joseph, assistant director of the Center for African Studies, part of Ohio State’s Office of International Affairs.

Despite the emotional pull of Obama’s life story, Joseph said Somalis remain “very practical and pragmatic voters. They’re looking at the whole package.”

Among about 300 OSU students of Somali descent, only some can vote in this election. Many do not have full U.S. citizenship, which prevents them from voting.

“If I could vote, I would vote for Obama,” said Fowzia Farah, a sophomore in journalism.

Sahhur Mohamud, a sophomore in nursing, agrees with Obama’s charges that McCain as president would be a continuation of the Bush administration.

“I just feel like McCain is another Bush,” Mohamud said. “Bush ran the country into the ground.”

Although Somali voters consider the war in Iraq a serious issue, current U.S. policy toward Somalia is also a concern. In December 2006, the United States supported the Ethiopian invasion of Somalia that expelled the Union of Islamic Courts from Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu. The United States and Ethiopia suspected the UIC of having ties to al-Qaeda in East Africa. The Ethiopian military occupation of Somalia continues today.

Ibrahim Abdullah, a field coordinator for the Obama Campaign, said the Ethiopian occupation destroyed the fragile peace and order the UIC had built under the strict enforcement of Islamic law. The UIC law overpowered clan allegiances that fueled strife in Somalia since the early 1990s.

“They were doing a great job,” Abdullah said of the UIC, which he credited with defeating Somalia’s warlords.

Now, with the UIC ousted, Somalia has slipped back into chaos.

Takeelo said he hopes an Obama administration would encourage negotiations between Somalia and Ethiopia.

“I would think he would bring the two sides to the table, let them talk, and help them to understand one another,” Takeelo said.

Although the Columbus Somali community exhibits enthusiastic support for Sen. Barack Obama, The race for Ohio remains relatively close, with a University of Cincinnati poll putting Obama only 3.1 percentage points ahead of McCain in the fight for Ohio’s 20 electoral votes.

Wilson Dizard can be reached at [email protected]