Hamtramck Mayor Adam Alharbi sworn in at inauguration, calls for unity

• Adam Alharbi is sworn in as mayor of Hamtramck.
• Muhith Mahmood, who misplaced by 11 votes, is asking the Michigan Supreme Courtroom to order the counting of 37 untabulated ballots.
• Sworn in as a council member, Yousuf Saed might have turn into Michigan’s first elected official of Somali descent.

Adam Alharbi was sworn in as the brand new mayor of Hamtramck as his challenger awaits a attainable choice from the Michigan Supreme Courtroom on counting untabulated ballots.

Throughout a colourful ceremony on Sunday, Jan. 4, on the Hamtramck Public Library, which featured patriotic and multicultural shows, Alharbi, 44, raised his proper hand and took the oath of workplace administered by Hamtramck District Decide Alexis Krot. After he was sworn in, a capability crowd within the library stood, clapping, whistling and cheering in assist.

In his speech, Alharbi referred to as for unity and mentioned everybody shall be revered in Hamtramck, a various metropolis with the best proportion of immigrants in Michigan. Latest years have seen contentious debates amongst residents over cultural points, as the primary all-Muslim metropolis council within the US handed resolutions that mirrored the views of the town’s altering demographics however upset some. In response to census information, it’s estimated that about half of the town is Muslim, with Yemeni Individuals and Bangladeshi Individuals being the 2 largest ethnic teams.

“Hamtramck is a metropolis not like some other,” Alharbi informed the gang. “Inside these two sq. miles, we symbolize all the world. However variety is just a power when it’s constructed on a basis of unity. In the present day we flip the web page. My objective is to guide a metropolis the place each individual, regardless of the language you converse, the religion you observe or how lengthy you’ve gotten lived right here, not solely feels welcome, however really revered. We’re one Hamtramck and it is time we begin appearing like one Hamtramck.”

Extra: Wayne County decide guidelines in opposition to counting 37 Hamtramck mayoral votes

Alharbi, a patent engineer with the U.S. Division of Commerce, received by 11 votes over Assemblyman Muhith Mahmood. The shut election is being disputed by Mahmood, who filed a lawsuit in November asking for the 37 uncounted ballots discovered the day after the election to be counted. Wayne County Chief Decide Patricia Fresard dominated in opposition to Mahmood in December and counted the 37 votes, a call that Mahmood’s lawyer, Mark Brewer, a former chairman of the Michigan Democratic Get together, appealed to the Michigan Supreme Courtroom.

As of Friday, January 2, the state Supreme Courtroom has not indicated whether or not they are going to hear the case. Alharbi addressed the lawsuit throughout his speech.

“I do know there are nonetheless some noises about authorized challenges, however my focus just isn’t on the headlines, however on the individuals,” the brand new mayor mentioned. “The voters have spoken. The oath has been taken and now it’s time to start the work… with a coronary heart stuffed with gratitude and a deep sense of duty. Whether or not you voted for me, for my opponents, or by no means, I’m your mayor.”

Brewer informed the Free Press in a press release Friday, Jan. 2, that Alharbi is coming into workplace below a cloud.

“I am not fearful concerning the inauguration, however he comes into workplace realizing he truly received the election,” Brewer mentioned. “If the 37 votes are tallied and the outcomes change, Alharbi should resign or be eliminated by quo warranto,” referring to a authorized order that asks an official to show he has the best to carry workplace.

Three councilors had been additionally sworn in or re-elected on Sunday: Abu Musa, a re-elected councilor who’s mayor pro-tem; Nayeem Choudhury, a former councilor who misplaced re-election in 2023, however in November; and Yousuf Saed, a political newcomer. Saed, an immigrant from Somalia, is believed to be the primary elected official of Somali descent in Michigan historical past. He was supported on this marketing campaign by Yemeni American teams and leaders.

The invocation was made by Imam Abdul Latif Azom, the non secular chief of Masjid Al Falah, a mosque in Detroit close to the Hamtramck border. Omar Thabet, a metropolis administrative officer and CEO of Oz Media, hosted the inauguration. Additionally current on the inauguration had been Amer Ghalib, the outgoing mayor; Hamtramck’s interim police chief and hearth chief; State Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit; Benton Harbor Mayor Marcus Muhammad, and council members Mohammed Alsomiri, Muhtasin Sadman and Mohammed Hassan. Mahmood, who was a councilor on the time of the election, was not current. Ghalib didn’t run for re-election after being nominated by President Donald Trump as ambassador to Kuwait; Whereas he’s unlikely to get that position after an agonizing Senate listening to, Ghalib mentioned he’s being thought of for an additional federal position within the authorities that may assist Hamtramck.

“I could not go overseas as ambassador of america, however I’ll serve in one other essential position throughout the authorities that permits me to remain related to the neighborhood,” Ghalib mentioned throughout his inauguration speech. “And so I’ll proceed to serve this neighborhood eternally.”

Alharbi was Ghalib’s marketing campaign supervisor when he ran for mayor and received in 2021. Ghalib mentioned he’ll assist and assist Alharbi.

“We shall be by your facet and behind you each step you’re taking,” Ghalib mentioned. Throughout his remarks, Ghalib mentioned the town had a multi-million greenback deficit when he took workplace 4 years in the past however now has a multi-million greenback surplus.

The ceremony started round 6 p.m. with a shade guard led by Mark Widzinksi, a Hamtramck native and commander of a department of the Polish Legion of American Veterans. Widzinksi spoke positively about Hamtramck’s variety, saying the combination of various teams is what the Bible describes. Invoice Meyer, a Hamtramck activist who can also be a musician, performed songs on a keyboard accompanied by a singer. In the course of the ceremonies, a canopy of Lee Greenwood’s track “God Bless the USA,” a staple of Trump rallies, was performed as a video of males singing in entrance of Mount Rushmore appeared on the display screen. Holding American flags, a gaggle of younger kids wearing Center Japanese and South Asian clothes recited the Pledge of Allegiance and a tribute to the American flag.

Alharbi was born in Yemen and moved to the US on the age of eight, Thabet mentioned in introducing the brand new mayor. Alharbi graduated from Hamtramck Excessive Faculty in 1999 after which from Michigan State College with a level in electrical and pc engineering.

Alharbi spoke concerning the allegations of voter and residency fraud in Hamtramck. Hassan and Sadman are at the moment charged with election fraud, and Mahmood and Musa are being investigated by Michigan State Police for residency fraud, claiming they reside in Troy. Fresard in December dismissed a lawsuit filed by Alharbi difficult Mahmood’s proper to be mayor, saying he lived in Troy, a declare Mahmood denies. Hassan mentioned in a speech on the inauguration that the media has wrongly labeled the town as corrupt.

“I’m a person of motion, not of corruption,” Hassan mentioned. “The media at all times says… a corrupt metropolis. In the present day I need to inform the media that we’re not corrupt.”

Alharbi didn’t point out any individual by title in his feedback, however appeared to consult with a few of the allegations revamped the previous yr.

“We should shield the integrity of our native democracy,” Alharbi mentioned. “This was a really shut election and the outcomes had been eye-opening. It confirmed me the deep issues that lots of you’ve gotten about voter fraud and the shortage of belief in our system. Going ahead, I need to rebuild belief, this time by guaranteeing wholesome, clear elections the place each authorized vote is protected and each citizen can belief the outcomes. We should make sure that our elections are decided by the trustworthy votes of our residents, and never by questionable ways.”

Alharbi added, “And let’s be clear: This metropolis belongs to the individuals who truly reside right here. I imagine those that need to lead this neighborhood have to be a part of its on a regular basis life, share our challenges and rejoice our successes. Collectively, you deserve leaders who know Hamtramck as a result of they name it house.”

Native elections in Hamtramck are nonpartisan, however nationwide politics and battles between Republicans and Democrats performed a job within the race. Alharbi and Ghalib supported Trump, whereas Mahmood Kamala supported Harris. Alharbi was a part of the engagement efforts between the Republican Get together and Muslim voters in Hamtramck.

Alharbi mentioned he plans to handle issues about excessive water payments and extreme ticketing by police and metropolis officers. Some residents have complained about what they are saying is an overzealous assault on immigrant communities by the town over parking violations and housing and small enterprise code violations. Though Muslims make up all of Hamtramck’s elected officers, they continue to be a minority amongst metropolis officers.

“My job is to work with our metropolis group to make your life in Hamtramck simpler, not more durable,” Alharbi mentioned. “This begins a brand new period of transparency. We are going to meet you wherever you might be, working with our neighborhood leaders and influencers who converse our many languages. No resident ought to ever be left at midnight due to the language barrier or lack of communication from Metropolis Corridor, from the telephone traces to the entrance desk. You should be handled with skilled dignity.”

Alharbi additionally added that “public security is our first precedence.”

“We are going to work hand-in-hand with our police departments to deal with theft and violent crime head-on, guaranteeing our officers have the sources they want whereas constructing the neighborhood belief that calls for actual justice.”

Contact Niraj Warikoo: nwarikoo@freepress.com, X @nwarikoo or Facebook @nwarikoo