The Hamtramck City Council will remain the only all-Muslim council in the U.S. after a community arts worker, Lynn Blasey, came in fourth place in a six-person race for three Council seats. Mayor Pro Tem Mohammed Hassan, one of three incumbent City Councilmen running for reelection, was the top vote-getter among the candidates, according to results from the city clerk.

Hamtramck entered American history in 2022 as the first American city whose City Council members were entirely Muslim.

Hassan drew national scrutiny earlier this year when he introduced a Council resolution in June that banned the display of LGBTQ+ flags on city property. Since the resolution’s unanimous passage, Hamtramck has seen a wave of attacks against LGBTQ+ flags, symbols and people, according to residents and activists.

Hassan garnered 1,618 votes, 21.9 percent of the total. Another incumbent, Councilman Mohammed Alsomiri, came in second place with 1,309 votes or 17.7 percent, while challenger Muhtasin Rahman Sadman, a political newcomer, came in third with 1,238 votes or 16.8 percent.

Hamtramck City Council winners 2023 elections

Blasey, a LGBTQ+ candidate, came in fourth place, with 1,156 votes or 15.65 percent, just 82 votes below Sadman. Councilman Nayeem Choudhury came in fifth with 1,118 votes or 15.1 percent and Nasr Saleh Hussain came in last place with 887 votes or 12 percent.

Hamtramck voters narrowly rejected a ballot proposal the Council supported that would have raised the annual salaries for mayor, mayor pro tem and City Council members to 7 percent, 6 percent and 5 percent of the governor’s salary, respectively. The unofficial final result for proposal 2 as reported by the Wayne County Clerk, 49.32 percent voted YES, while 50.68 percent voted NO.

Hamtramck voters also rejected proposal 1, which would have allowed City Council members to run for mayor and the mayor to run for City Council without resigning 60 days before the filing deadline, as is currently required. Also, voters rejected proposal 3, which would remove the requirement for a person who was previously mayor or a member of the City Council to wait two years before being eligible for an appointment as city manager or acting city manager, voting 56.11 percent NO to 43.89 percent YES.