# Amer Ghalib

Amer Ghalib (born 1979) is an American politician serving as the Democratic mayor of Hamtramck, Michigan, since November 3, 2021. He is the first Arab American and Muslim to serve as mayor of Hamtramck. He is a social conservative and endorsed Donald Trump in the 2024 United States presidential election. As mayor of Hamtramck, he implemented policies banning pride flags from publicly owned flagpoles and avoiding city investment in Israeli companies.
In March 2025, Trump named Ghalib as his nominee for United States ambassador to Kuwait.

## Early life and career

Ghalib was born in Yemen. He immigrated to the United States in 1997 and worked in a factory that made plastic components for cars whilst attending Hamtramck High School. He studied biology at Henry Ford Community College before attending Wayne State University where he received a biology degree. and became a healthcare worker at a medical office in Hamtramck. He has three children.

## Mayor of Hamtramck

In the 2021 Hamtramck mayoral election, Ghalib defeated incumbent mayor Karen Majewski with 68% of the vote. He became both the first Arab American and Muslim to hold the position and according to the Detroit Free Press became the first non-Polish American mayor in 100 years. A member of the Democratic Party, he worked with what was believed to be the first all-Muslim city council in the United States. In June 2023, the city council banned the pride flag from publicly owned flagpoles, with Ghalib stating that he "intended to bring neutrality to city property without promoting sexuality, racism, religion or politics". The move prompted criticism from several Michigan Democrats, including Rashida Tlaib. Ghalib described LGBTQ activists as a "militia".
He met with former U.S. National Security Advisor Michael Flynn on September 12, 2023. In June 2024, Ghalib and the city council unanimously passed a resolution which required the city to avoid investing in Israeli companies or those supporting Israeli apartheid.

### 2024 elections

During the 2024 Michigan Democratic presidential primary, Ghalib supported the Uncommitted Movement and recommended voters vote uncommitted instead of Joe Biden. In September 2024, Ghalib endorsed Donald Trump in the 2024 United States presidential election after meeting him at a town hall in Flint in which they discussed issues affecting Arab and Muslim Americans. Kurt Streeter of The New York Times reported that as a social conservative, Ghalib found more in common with Republicans who had "actively courted him." In his endorsement, Ghalib acknowledged their disagreements on key issues but that he believed that Trump would end the Israel–Hamas war. Trump reposted his endorsement on Truth Social and Ghalib joined him on some of his presidential campaign rallies.
After Trump began his presidency in 2025, Ghalib posted on Facebook a purported justification for his continued support of Trump despite what the Facebook post acknowledged was Trump's expressed desire to permanently relocate Palestinians from Gaza. In March 2025, Trump named Ghalib as his nominee for United States ambassador to Kuwait. Trump praised Ghalib on social media, writing, “Amer worked hard to help us secure a historic victory in Michigan".