Dearborn mayor-elect Abdullah Hammoud hopes to help flood victims, working families on city's south end

DEARBORN, Mich (FOX 2) - When Abdullah Hammoud takes office in January, his first order of business will be helping to prevent Dearborn residents from dealing with severe flooding.

More: Dearborn elects first Arab-American mayor

"There’s a clock on the wall. It is when is the next heavy rain going to hit in Dearborn, leading to the next catastrophic flooding event like we had this summer," he said.

Heavy rainfall caused bad flooding across Metro Detroit in June. Hammoud spent time helping after some 20,000 homes were damaged.

Hammoud said he also wants to help working families who live on Dearborn's south end, a place he calls the heartbeat of the city.

Abdullah Hammoud

"This is the most marginalized of the whole city, where asthma rates are the highest. The pollution is at an all-time high. This part of town has been neglected for quite some time," he said.

Hammoud, 31, was elected Tuesday to be Dearborn's first Arab-American and Muslim mayor.

His mayoral victory comes one year after Muslim Americans made history in 2020’s general election.  Of the 170 Muslim American candidates last year, 62 won their respective elections, which includes state legislature, school board, and county seats.

 "I think Dearborn, in this town, it demonstrates that we elect individuals based on the direction which they lead, no matter the direction in which they pray," he said.