Hamtramck (Michigan): Hamtramck on Tuesday elected four Muslims in the 6-member council making the Detroit enclave, known for its Polish heritage, first Muslim-majority City Council in the United States.
Muslims now hold four of the council's six seats in the city that was settled by Germans, became predominantly Polish in the early 1900s and now has a slight majority of Muslims from Yemen, Bangladesh and Bosnia-Herzegovina, Associated Press reported.
Local residents on Tuesday elected Yemeni-American Saad Almasmari and re-elected Bangladesh natives Abu Musa and Anam Miah. They join Bangladeshi member Mohammed Hassan.
"We are very proud and we are very happy for that achievement, what we have done in this city, for our city," said Jamal Alturki, a voter, is quoted by WDIV Detroit.
Commenting on the poll results, Anam Miah, the newly elected member in the city council, said, "I think that sends a message not only to Hamtramck but throughout the region that people want their representation in offices".
Although there will be more diversity at the table, they want to make clear the goal of public service stays the the same.
"My concern is to give the people, everybody, equal opportunity and be fair for everybody," said Abu Musa.
"We are going to represent everybody. We are going to serve everybody, Christians, Jewish, Muslims, everybody," said Almasmari.
University of Michigan-Dearborn associate professor Sally Howell, an expert on Michigan and U.S. Muslims, tells The Associated Press she's unaware of another Muslim-majority council.
The council in nearby Dearborn has an Arab-American majority but not all are Muslim.