On the campaign trail … Candidates have a long history of making unreal promises

By Charles Sercombe
Add one more to the write-in city council candidate list.
Veronica Smith, who organizes a yearly Juneteenth picnic, announced on Tuesday that she, too, is seeking a seat on city council as a write-in candidate in the November election.
Smith said, on social media:
“Many of you have asked, over the years, why I won’t run for City Council. As the old school song goes, ‘Got to give the People, give the People what they want.’
“FINALLY, I’m running as a WRITE-IN for CITY COUNCIL.
‘VERONICA’ for City Council. PLEASE SHARE!!!!!”
She now joins council write-in candidates Joe Strzalka and Diane Elizabeth Frkan on the Nov. 4 ballot.
Also running as a write-in candidate is Lynn Blasey, who is running for mayor.
Want to join the party, and also become a part of the election as a write-in candidate? If so, you have until Oct. 24 to register as a write-in.
In other campaign news:
Local Imam Arif Huskic has some questions for certain candidates who are promising lower property taxes and water bills, among other adjusted costs to homeowners and residents.
“I respectfully ask all political candidates in Hamtramck to clearly explain how they plan to lower these bills and keep the city financially sustainable, especially without creating new good-paying jobs or bringing back industrial opportunities that could employ hundreds or even thousands of local residents?” Huskic posted on social media.

Political candidates promising to lower taxes is nothing new; they have been doing it for generations
Once in office, however, it doesn’t take long for those promises to evaporate. That’s because many of these costs are set by law, or else are simply reflecting the city’s costs of providing services to residents.
In other words, the costs for public safety, the courts and keeping our drinking water safe, just to name a few services, have never-ending price increases for residents, because those costs simply keep going up.
Of course, since Huskic posted on social media, people responded.
Joe Strzalka, who is running as a write-in candidate for city council and is a former councilmember, knows all too well why those promises are basically empty and meaningless.
“You’re not going to be able to (lower taxes) until the unfunded pension costs are paid off in approximately 15 years,” Strzalka said.

“You can attempt to grow out of it by being a place people and businesses want to be.”

And, as is his nature, Strzalka didn’t hold back on the subtle snark:
“That however would require homeowners and landlords to keep up their property and elected officials who speak logically, in complete sentences, live in the city, and didn’t gain their position by committing election fraud.”

Hamtramck’s next election is Nov. 4, where voters will select a new mayor and three council candidates. Only one current councilmember is seeking re-election as an incumbent, and that is Abu Musa.
Councilmember Muhith Mahmood, who is finishing his first term, is seeking the mayor’s job, and Councilmember Khalil Refai is not seeking re-election.
Mayor Amer Ghalib is also not seeking re-election, and instead is hoping to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the ambassador to Kuwait.
Posted Oct. 10, 2025