What is the ruling on what some printing press owners do in the way of campaigning for certain individuals in elections?

The questioner : My question is also, what is the ruling on a printing press owner, as a printing press owner, doing election campaigning for these candidates?

The Shaykh : According to the principle we mentioned, did he not distinguish between a Muslim and a communist or an atheist?

The questioner : With a distinction?

The Shaykh : If that is the case, it is not permissible. But if he did campaigning by printing pamphlets for one he thinks is better, there is no harm in that; however, he must keep this principle before his eyes.

The questioner : Okay, my Shaykh, I work by making election pamphlets for these people. Okay, am I helping them to sin because they will fall into sin and burn themselves?

The Shaykh : I did not understand me, if that is the case.
Al-Halabi : The answer was given previously regarding the election that is the least harmful.

The Shaykh : You must note that I addressed the issue regarding the candidate himself, so we do not advise him, and regarding the voter, we advise him to choose from those in the arena the one whose evil is less than the others. So now, your question after this explanation, I do not think it is applicable, in the sense, let us make the example smaller so the answer is clear. Suppose the candidates are two, two, not eighty, two, meaning the state needs two, one is a Muslim and the other is a disbeliever. We advise this Muslim, Malik, to enter this dilemma, but he sees it differently than we do, so he nominated himself. What do you do now? One of two things is necessary: either you choose this Muslim or that disbeliever. Your choice of the disbeliever is clearly a sin, but your choice of the Muslim is not clearly a sin; why? Because if you, Bakr, and 'Amr, and so on, did not choose this Muslim, who would succeed?

The questioner : The disbeliever.

The Shaykh : Okay, who caused the disbeliever to succeed? The cause was not his choice, but only those who chose this disbeliever, rather, it was the Muslims' shrinking back from choosing this Muslim, so the votes for that one increased and he succeeded and this one failed. Is this example clear?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : Okay, make the example bigger as you wish. Instead of two, one Muslim and one disbeliever, say for example ten Muslims and two disbelievers, say forty Muslims and ten disbelievers, and so on. So then, to alleviate the harm to the Muslims that would result if all the disbelievers succeeded, to alleviate this harm, we must choose the Muslims. Is that clear?

The questioner: Yes.

The questioner : A response to the question.

The Shaykh: Go ahead.

The questioner : Okay, you say that the original rule is that a person does not nominate himself. Okay, if the Muslims do not want to nominate themselves, for whom do we leave the arena for the communists? ...

The Shaykh : The answer has already been given.

The questioner : What do you say about one who makes room for all the candidates, with their various orientations and ideas, to broadcast their election campaigning in his house or his shop?

The Shaykh : Without distinguishing between a Muslim and a disbeliever?

The questioner : Probably.
The Shaykh: What is this usually?

The questioner : Yes, without distinguishing.

The Shaykh : This was also answered earlier. It is not permissible to choose the disbeliever over the Muslim, and it is not permissible to campaign for him. Even if, as you said, he campaigns for everyone, he is helping the disbelievers, and this help is not permissible.

The questioner : Muslims who are open sinners and Muslims who are...?

The Shaykh : This is not permissible except that he chooses the righteous one. Yes.