PARIS, June 20 (UPI) -- The National Federation of Muslims in France captured 19 of the 43 seats in voting for representatives of France's National Council of the Muslim Faith.
The elections are the second held for the Muslim council, founded to represent the interests of some 1,230 mosques and an estimated five million Muslims living in France -- Western Europe's largest population.
The conservative Union of Islamic Organizations of France and the moderate, Algeria-backed Paris mosque each captured 10 seats, and a handful of smaller groups picked up the rest of the seats in Sunday's voting.
The results essentially offer a status quo for the 2-year-old council, which, critics say is all but paralyzed by partisan conflicts.
In January Dounia Bouzar, one of two women on the council, quit the body. She charged it was dominated by men hailing from outside the country who were out of touch with the needs and concerns of young Muslims living in France.
