A Gallup poll showed that 6 in 10 Americans would support a qualified presidential candidate who was also a Muslim.

The poll's results were noted following controversial comments made by Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson regarding a Muslim presidential candidate in late September, although the poll was originally conducted in June.

“I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that,” Carson said on NBC’s Meet the Press. His comments sparked a nationwide debate over the electability of a Muslim candidate. 

The Gallup poll was conducted in June, before Carson’s comments, and asked voters whether they would support a candidate who was Catholic, Jewish, Mormon, Evangelical Christian, Muslim or Atheist. Of the voters, 60 percent said they would support a Muslim candidate. 

The poll found 58 percent of voters would support an atheist candidate, while 93 percent said they would vote for a Catholic one.

Among the 11 categories tested, the 60 percent vote for a Muslim candidate was the second lowest positive response. Of Republicans polled, 54 percent said they would not vote for a Muslim candidate, while 45 percent said they would. 

Of Democrats, 73 percent said they would support a Muslim for president. 

Sources: Gallup, Voice of America / Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

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