Garden City mayor announces bid for state house seat
March 9th, 20180 GARDEN CITY — Garden City Mayor Randy Walker announced he is running for the 11th district seat in the Michigan House of Representatives, which comprises Garden city, Inkster and portions of Westland, Livonia and Dearborn Heights. Walker served four two-year terms as mayor before being elected to a four-year term in...
A look at Michigan’s Congressional races (Part 1)
March 2nd, 20180 Over the course of the following weeks, The AANews will be looking at U.S. Congressional candidates in the Aug. 7 and Nov. 6 elections. Here are some from Flint and Metro Detroit. FIFTH DISTRICT (Flint) Dan Kildee (Democrat incumbent) Kildee, a native of Flint who now lives in Flint Township, has served in Congress since 2013. He is...
Hundreds attend fundraiser to retain Judge Mariam Bazzi
March 2nd, 20180 "I will work very hard during this election season to retain my seat because I want to continue serving the people of Wayne County." - Judge Mariam Bazzi DEARBORN — More than 300 people attended a fundraiser for Wayne County Third Circuit Court Judge Mariam Bazzi at Byblos Banquet Center on Feb. 28. The crowd included several...
Westland Mayor Bill Wild seeks Conyers’ seat
February 23rd, 20180 Westland Mayor Bill Wild has thrown his hat in the race to replace former Congressman John Conyers in the 13th Congressional District. Wild said in a statement by his campaign he hopes to bring to Congress more than 20 years of experience as a public servant, having served about 85,000 residents as Westland's mayor since 2007 and...
Hundreds attend Sam Baydoun’s first fundraiser in bid for Wayne County Commission
February 23rd, 20180 I want to give back to all of you. I truly believe that there is no greater calling than public service. I want the opportunity to fight for you. DEARBORN — More than 500 people attended the first fundraising dinner for long-time real estate broker Sam Baydoun, who recently announced his bid for the Wayne County Commission seat being...
Republican gubernatorial candidates lack in diversity, but loyal to party policies
February 16th, 20180 Bringing back jobs, improving the economy, education, immigration and infrastructure are some of the most prominent issues on Michigan voters' minds this upcoming election season. The pool of Democratic gubernatorial candidates is distinctly diverse – a Muslim Arab American, an Indian American, an African American and a...
Hamtramck City Councilman Saad Almasmari kicks off campaign for State House seat
February 9th, 20180 HAMTRAMCK — When Saad Almasmari made history in Nov. 2015 by receiving the most votes in the Hamtramck City Council race— making it the first City Council with a Muslim-majority in the U.S— he pledged to ensure proportional representation and that the city would handle resources well enough to move on from emergency...
Funds for governor’s race near $17 million
February 9th, 20180 LANSING — The amount of money raised for the soon-to-be open governor's seat is nearly $17 million, according to reports. These figures are more than double amount last time the seat was available in 2010. The numbers represent both the eight Republican and four Democratic candidates for the August primary. "In general, each race...
Democratic gubernatorial race offers wide representation and diversity
February 9th, 20180 This gubernatorial election has a pool of Democratic candidates who represent a diverse range of backgrounds, including an Arab American, an African American and an Indian American. If any of them are elected, it would be first for the state. The fourth and leading candidate, Gretchen Whitmer, would be the state's second woman...
Rashida Tlaib seeks Conyers’ seat, would be first Muslim woman in Congress
February 6th, 20180 DETROIT — Rashida Tlaib, a Democrat, has officially thrown her hat in the race for Michigan's 13th congressional district. The seat was left open by longstanding U.S. Rep. John Conyers (D-Detroit), who retired in December amid sexual harassment allegations. "Serving in the U.S. Congress is about much more than voting on bills,"...
Wayne County Executive Warren Evans announces re-election bid
January 26th, 20180 DETROIT — On Jan. 22, Wayne County Executive Warren C. Evans announced before a crowd of more than 100 supporters at the Samaritan Center on the city's east side that he'd seek a second term. "You find a way to make chicken pie out of chicken feathers," Evans said about his first term. "That's what we did, we took chicken feathers...
Dearborn’s longtime associate broker Sam Baydoun announces run for Wayne County Commission seat
January 26th, 20180 DEARBORN — Dearborn Real Estate associate broker and businessman Sam Baydoun announced that he will seek the Wayne County Commission seat being vacated by Chairman Gary Woronchak, who has opted against seeking another term on the county's governing board and will instead run for an open seat in the State Senate. Woronchak represents...
Dearborn’s longtime associate broker Sam Baydoun announces run for Wayne County Commissioner seat
January 24th, 20181 DEARBORN, Mich. – Dearborn Real Estate associate broker and businessman Sam Baydoun announced today that he will seek the Wayne County Commission seat being vacated by Chairman Gary Woronchak, who has opted to against seeking another term on the county's governing board and will instead run for an open seat in the State Senate....
Reps. Abdullah Hammoud and Darrin Camilleri receive Legislator of the Month awards
January 12th, 20180 LANSING — State Reps. Abdullah Hammoud (D-Dearborn) and Darrin Camilleri (D-Brownstown Township) were named co-recipients of Progress Michigan's Legislator of the Month Award. Hammoud and Camilleri were named for their efforts to engage young people in Dearborn and Downriver in the political process. "Decisions made day after day in...
Gary Woronchak gains an endorsement in his bid for State Senate
January 12th, 20180 DETROIT — Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy has announced her endorsement of Gary Woronchak for the State Senate in the Third District. "Gary Woronchak understands the challenges my office faces in fighting crime and will be an advocate to help us meet those challenges as a state senator," Worthy said. "He has demonstrated......
Elections: What to look for in 2018
January 5th, 20180 DEARBORN — This year, Michigan residents will have an opportunity to take part in setting new goals by shaking up the state's leadership, as numerous critical offices in both Washington, D.C. and Lansing become open. The primary election will be held on August 7 and the general election will be held on November 6. United States...
Former Dearborn mayoral candidate Tafelski halts vote recount, accepts election results
December 15th, 20170 DEARBORN — Former Dearborn mayoral candidate Tom Tafelski withdrew his petition for a recount a few hours after a recount began at the Dearborn Administrative Center. The Arab American News was informed that in the first three hours of recounting the votes for the November 7 election, Mayor Jack O'Reilly recovered eight additional......
This is how much candidates spent in Dearborn’s municipal elections
December 15th, 20170 DEARBORN — Candidates in Dearborn's Nov. 7 municipal elections spent almost $ 1 million during the election, according to the Wayne County Clerk. Dearbornites voted for a mayor, seven City Council members and a City Clerk. The final campaign finance reports show that all 18 candidates spent a total of $997,864 out of $1,146,725...
U.S. Rep. Sander Levin retiring from Congress when term ends next year
December 8th, 20170 ROYAL OAK — After 35 years in Congress, U.S. Rep. Sander Levin (D-Royal Oak) is retiring and pursing a different career. The 86-year-old Democrat will not run for reelection in 2018, but will instead join the University of Michigan's Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, where he will continue to work on issues that have engrossed...
Detroit City Clerk vote recount begins
December 8th, 20170 DETROIT — The Wayne County Board of Canvassers began its recount of votes for Detroit's City Clerk on Tuesday at Cobo Center, two weeks after candidate Garlin Gilchrist II announced he was requesting it. He lost by a narrow margin to incumbent Janice Winfrey. Gilchrist said he had more than 30 campaign volunteers observing the...
Coalition emerges to fight legalized marijuana ballot proposal
December 2nd, 20172 LANSING — While supporters of a ballot proposal to legalize marijuana for recreational use cleared their first hurdle by turning in more than enough signatures to tentatively qualify for the November 2018 ballot, more challenges are on the horizon. An opposing committee — Healthy and Productive Michigan — formed on Wednesday to......
Dearborn mayoral candidate Tom Tafelski files petition for recount
December 1st, 20170 DETROIT — Dearborn mayoral candidate and current City Councilman Tom Tafelski has filed a petition for votes recount for the November general elections. Tafelski lost the race against incumbent Mayor Jack O’Reilly Jr. 57 to 42 percent . O’Reilly garnered 10,999 votes while Tafelski received only 8,218. Tafelski claimed “voter...
Commissioner Gary Woronchak to run for state senate
November 15th, 20170 DEARBORN — On Thursday, Nov. 2, Wayne County Commission Chairman Gary Woronchak (D-Dearborn) announced he won’t be seeking reelection, after being unopposed for reelection in 2014 and 2016, he plans to run for the third state Senate District in 2018. The district encompasses Dearborn and Melvindale and includes a portion of......
Voters in Detroit and Westland stay with the status quo
November 10th, 20170 DETROIT — On Tuesday, Nov. 7, incumbent Mayor Mike Duggan retained his seat, defeating State Sen. Coleman A. Young II in a landslide victory, with 72 percent of the vote. "It's been a year-long campaign and though all of the different kinds of attacks, I've been treated with nothing but warmth and kindness from Detroiters… I am...
Hamtramck’s Karen Majewski wins re-election as mayor, Al-Marsoumi elected to City Council
November 10th, 20170 HAMTRAMCK — Mayor Karen Majewski won reelection to a fourth term on Tuesday, Nov. 7. She received 1,960 votes, while Mohammed Hassan finished with 1,231. The overall voter turnout in the city's Nov. 7 general elections was 22 percent. In the City Council race, Fadel Al-Marsoumi became the second Arab American elected to that......
