August 9th, 20220STERLING HEIGHTS — Paul Manni, a 27-year-old Sterling Heights businessman and 2021 City Council candidate, has been charged with felony election fraud by Michigan’s attorney general.
Last year, before the November 2 runoff for six seats on the Sterling Heights City Council, Manni had finished strong in the primaries as a newcomer...
December 7th, 20210MAINE — The City Council of South Portland, Maine unanimously voted on Monday to elect the city’s first Muslim mayor.
Deqa Dhalac, 53, is believed to be the country’s first Somali American mayor. Dhalac won a City Council seat back in 2018, being the only non-White candidate for a Council seat in the Whitest state in the U.S....
November 5th, 20210This week, headlines regarding Tuesday’s election across local, national and international media included some version of the word "historic."
Not surprising when one takes into consideration that three Arab American candidates in some of the state’s densest cities enjoyed landslide victories for mayoral races: Amer Ghalib in...
November 5th, 20210DEARBORN HEIGHTS — With partial and full terms for City Council and clerk, a full term for treasurer and different proposals on the ballot this year, the results are in for all but one position.
City Council
One of the partial terms on the ballot was to finish out former Councilwoman Lisa Hicks-Clayton’s term when she was...
November 1st, 20210DEARBORN - The Dearborn City Clerk’s Office will be extending its operating hours to 7 a.m. – 8 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 2, for residents who need to register to vote and then complete their voting, and for people who are already registered to vote to drop off an absent voter (AV ballot).
The Clerk’s Office is inside...
October 30th, 20210The Arab American News is endorsing three candidates for City Council, one for mayor and one for treasurer in the Nov. 2 election.
For mayor, The Arab American News is endorsing incumbent Mayor Bill Bazzi for both the partial and full term.
Bill Bazzi was appointed mayor on January 26 to succeed the late Daniel Paletko, who passed...
October 30th, 20210Endorsing candidates for important offices is a major responsibility for local organizations and newspapers.
For an ethnic newspaper, the voice of the community we advocate for has to be taken into consideration, as should the issues that affect it the most. But decisions on endorsements cannot simply come about with a superficial...
October 23rd, 20210HAMTRAMCK — Hamtramck’s mayoral race has taken a historic turn during and after the primaries, with Yemeni American candidate Amer Ghalib emerging as front runner, competing against long-time incumbent Mayor Karen Majewski.
The Arab American News reached out to both, with questions geared towards their particular campaigns. The...
October 22nd, 20210DEARBORN — Voters in Dearborn will once again have a difficult decision to make in the upcoming general election.
Between selecting a new mayor for the first time in 14 years, all seven City Council members and nine members of a Charter Revision Commission, residents also have a proposal to decide on. All information on candidates...
October 17th, 20210DEARBORN — Jamil Khuja, who just recently earned endorsements from AAPAC, ACTPAC and AMPAC, is running for the Charter Revision Commission.
“I ran for the charter commission because I care about Dearborn and want improvement in our city government,” Khuja said. “My wife and I graduated from Dearborn Public Schools. She now...
October 17th, 20210DEARBORN — Having lived and/or worked in Dearborn almost all of his life, Glenn O’Kray is hoping to serve the community by being elected to the Charter Revision Commission.
O’Kray is a retired director of financial aid and adjunct instructor at Henry Ford College, where he served for 45 years.
He has also held leadership...
October 16th, 20210DEARBORN —Sharon Dulmage, a former School Board member, is hoping to continue to serve the community on the Charter Revision Commission.
Married to a lifelong Dearborn resident, Dulmage and her husband raised their children in the city that she herself has called home since 1963.
Dulmage attended Henry Ford College, Detroit...
October 13th, 20210DEARBORN — Kimberly Ismail, a lifelong resident and active volunteer for at least 20 years, is campaigning to be elected to the Charter Revision Commission.
Ismail has worked in the Dearborn Public School System for more than 15 years and is the founder of Speak Hope Walk for Hunger, an organizing campaign that supports refugee...
October 9th, 20210DEARBORN — As a resident for nearly 35 years, Laura Dudgeon is hoping to earn one of the nine seats on the Charter Revision Commission.
Dudgeon chose Dearborn as the place to raise her young son and because of the schools, the pools, the parks and the location.
She has found that Dearborn's best asset is the...
October 8th, 20210DEARBORN — With the general elections less than one month away, local political organizations have started announcing their endorsements.
While some organizations haven't finished announcing their endorsements, others have already announced.
Advocates of the Change for Tomorrow Political Action Committee (ACTPAC) have a formal...
October 6th, 20210DEARBORN — State Rep. Abdullah Hammoud has announced an endorsement from Wayne County Commissioner Sam Baydoun for his mayoral campaign.
“We are excited to share that we have earned the endorsement of Wayne County Commissioner Sam Baydoun,” Hammoud’s campaign Facebook page read. “Commissioner Baydoun and I have worked...
October 2nd, 20210DEARBORN — Michael Kuentz, a freelance photographer for the city of Dearborn, is campaigning to be one of nine mebers elected to the Charter Revision Commission.
Kuentz, a resident for more than 20 years, is a photographer and video producer, freelancing for the city and the Press & Guide and producing videos for the...
September 29th, 20211DEARBORN — As the election nears, State Rep. Abdullah Hammoud (D-Dearborn) has secured several more endorsements for his campaign to become the city's next mayor.
Hammoud's former competitors in the primary election, Tom Tafelski, Jim Parrelly and Council President Susan Dabaja, all have announced their support for him.
“Tom...
September 27th, 20210DEARBORN — Despite retiring from the city of Dearborn as the treasurer and finance director after 26 years of service, Jim O’Connor still wants to serve the city in other ways.
O’Connor is one of 22 candidates running for nine seats on the Charter Revision Commission.
He grew up in Dearborn and went on to graduate from Edsel...
September 27th, 20210DEARBORN — Mansour Sharha, who is currently serving as a Library Commissioner, is campaigning to earn one of nine seats on the Charter Revision Commission.
Sharha, a husband and father of four, has lived in Dearborn for more than 17 years with his family and is an activist, leader and mentor to young professional groups, including...
September 24th, 20210A survey by Lansing-based Glengariff Group shows Michigan voters are split in their approval of Governor Whitmer’s performance in office, an approval that has fallen over time.
The poll was commissioned by the Detroit Regional Chamber. It shows about 48 percent of voters approve of the Democratic governor's performance and 46...
September 19th, 20211DEARBORN — Having experience on one city commission already, Gail Walls is looking to bring her experience to the Charter Revision Commission.
Walls, who has lived in Dearborn for the past 33 years, has worked and raised her family in the city. She has worked for Ford Motor Company for 34 years in purchasing as a buyer and a...
September 14th, 20210DEARBORN — Mark Dawdy, a lifelong resident of Dearborn and a Fordson High School alumni, has announced his candidacy for the Charter Revision Commission.
Dawdy has been married to his wife, Diane, for 32 years and has two children through adoption.
After graduating from Fordson, Dawdy went on to Henry Ford College before...
September 11th, 20210DEARBORN — Hussein Hachem, the founder and CEO of Educare Student Services and the What’s Up Media Network, is vying for a seat on the Charter Revision Commission.
Voters approved the creation of the Charter Revision Commission during the Aug. 3 primary and now have to pick nine members in the Nov. 2 general election.
Hachem,...
September 11th, 20210DEARBORN — Cheryl Hawkins, a resident for more than 35 years and a mother of two, is looking to earn a seat on the Charter Revision Commission.
With bachelor's and master’s degrees in occupational therapy and a PhD in education, Hawkins considers herself a life-long learner.
Hawkins recently retired from Schoolcraft College...
September 4th, 20212DEARBORN — With voters approving the development of a Charter Revision Commission, community activist Hassan Abdallah wants to give back to the city that has always been home.
Abdallah’s father immigrated to Dearborn from Lebanon in the 1950’s in pursuit of the American dream and Abdallah is one of 11 children.
Being a...
August 28th, 20210DEARBORN — Community member, artist, activist and researcher Elizabeth Bailey has announced her candidacy for the Dearborn Charter Revision Commission.
Residents voted in the Aug. 3 primary for the establishment of a Charter Revision Commission and now will have to select nine commissioners in the Nov. 2 general...
August 5th, 20210WESTLAND — Voters hit the polls on August 3 and decided they wanted their current mayor and a City Councilwoman to face off in November.
Of the four candidates, incumbent Mayor Bill Wild and Councilwoman Tasha Green will be going head-to-head for the mayor's seat.
Wild, who has been mayor since 2007, is looking to serve his...
