Mayor of first US city with all-Muslim city council endorses Trump: ‘Right choice for this critical time’

The mayor of the first US city to have an all-Muslim city council has endorsed former President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election.

Amer Ghalib, the mayor of Hamtramck, Michigan, announced his endorsement in a Facebook post Sunday, just days after meeting the Republican candidate in person.

“I believe he is the right choice for this critical time,” Ghalib said of Trump, calling him “a man of principles.”

“I’ll not regret my decision no matter what the outcome would be, and I’m ready to face the consequences,” Ghalib wrote.

Trump later reposted Ghalib’s remarks on Truth Social.

The 45-year-old mayor met with Trump for a 20-minute meeting in Flint, Michigan on Tuesday, where the former president asked the mayor for his endorsement, Ghalib told The Detroit News.

“[Trump] knew a lot about me before the meeting,” he said

“We talked about various topics including the debates, the polls updates, the statistics of votes in Michigan and Wayne County, the Arab American concerns and the Yemeni Americans in particular,” Ghalib continued.

Ghalib, an immigrant from Yemen, was elected as the first Muslim mayor of Hamtramck in 2021.

Alongside other Muslim city council candidates, Hamtramck became the first city in the country with a Muslim-majority city council in 2015.

When Ghalib came into office, voters elected an all-Muslim city council in the roughly two-square-mile city of 28,000 residents, according to the Detroit Free Press.

U.S. Census data shows more than 40% of Hamtramck’s population now is foreign-born, including natives of Yemen.

The Hamtramck mayor’s Facebook endorsement was left with mixed reviews, with some users writing “very disappointing” and others calling the move a “bold and courageous decision.”

“Thank you all for your support, with all due respect to those who disagree with me,” Ghalib later replied to the outpour of comments.