Hamtramck Mayor, Amer Ghalib, a Democrat and an immigrant from Yemen, met with former President Donald Trump, a Republican, in Michigan. The meeting occurred before Trump’s town hall in Flint and lasted for approximately 20 minutes. Hamtramck Police Chief, Jamiel Altaheri, was also present at the meeting.
Ghalib described the meeting as “productive” and shared that Trump had asked for his endorsement. Ghalib presented Trump with an official letter outlining the city’s concerns and extended an invitation for him to visit Hamtramck. Trump, in turn, asked Ghalib for his endorsement and votes in Michigan.
The meeting was part of Trump’s campaign to win over Arab American and Muslim voters, some of whom are discontent with President Joe Biden’s policies in Gaza. Ghalib has been vocal in his support for Palestinians and has backed initiatives such as renaming a major street to Palestine Avenue and a city resolution to divest from Israel.
Ghalib and Trump discussed various topics, including debates, polls, and the Arab American and Yemeni American communities. Hamtramck has the highest concentration of Yemeni Americans among cities in the U.S. and the second-highest percentage of Arab American residents in Michigan after Dearborn. The mayor and all six members of the Hamtramck city council are Muslim, making it the only all-Muslim city council in the U.S.
Last year, Ghalib held a town hall meeting with Michael Flynn, Trump’s former national security adviser and a conservative activist. Arab Americans in Hamtramck and other parts of Wayne County have expressed frustration with the Democrats on social issues. In November 2022, Democratic candidates lost support in majority-Arab precincts in Dearborn after controversy over LGBTQ+ books in Dearborn public schools.
Hassan Aoun and Rola Makki, Republican activists in Dearborn, attended the Flint town hall and expressed that many in the Arab American community were shifting their support to the right. They were particularly upset with Vice President Kamala Harris’s response to Muslim protesters during a Romulus rally last month.
Notably, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, visited Hamtramck on two occasions but did not meet with any city officials. She did not arrange any meetings in the city with government officials or set up alternative meetings to compensate for not meeting Hamtramck’s officials. This situation created an opportunity for the Republican party to reach out to the Hamtramck City Government.
