HAMTRAMCK, Mich. — A Friday tabulation of 37 long-contested absentee votes moved challenger Muhith Mahmood in front of Mayor Adam Alharbi in Hamtramck’s mayoral race, though certification still waits on the courts.
Wayne County election officials opened the sealed packet at midday after Circuit Judge Kathleen McCarthy directed that the ballots be run through a tabulator by Oct. 16.
The new math has Mahmood at 2,089 and Alharbi at 2,077. Mahmood entered the day 11 votes behind and collected 30 of the 37 newly counted ballots.
The commission is holding certification until a circuit judge weighs in and until a separate fight over Mahmood’s city residency is settled. That hearing is on the calendar for Oct. 22.
Should the court bar Mahmood over residency, local officials have said voters would face a new election. Counsel for Alharbi said the mayor intends to request a full recount.
The disputed envelopes had been sidelined after then-Clerk Rana Faraj flagged chain-of-custody questions. Higher courts later said the votes must be examined and folded into the official totals.
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