Overview
- Hamtramck City Clerk Sami Elhady confirmed that a Nov. 4, 2025 ballot was found in the clerk’s office and secured in an evidence bag before being referred to Wayne County election authorities on Friday.
- The newly found ballot adds to 37 absentee ballots discovered the day after the election that the Michigan Court of Appeals ordered in March to undergo standard challenged-voter review procedures.
- County canvassers originally deadlocked 2–2 and excluded the 37 ballots over a reported break in chain of custody, which is the central legal issue now complicated by the new find.
- The city has already seen administrative fallout from the dispute, including the March dismissal of former clerk Rana Faraj and her subsequent lawsuit alleging wrongful termination.
- Wayne County elections officials have not yet said how the additional ballot will be handled, and the discovery has prompted local calls for changes to ballot handling and greater transparency in future reviews.