Detroit — A hand recount of ballots on Tuesday has affirmed the winner of Hamtramck's tightly contested mayoral race with Adam Alharbi beating challenger Muhith Mahmood by 11 votes.

Just six votes originally separated winner Alharbi from challenger Mahmood in the Nov. 4 general election. But Tuesday's recount found Alharbi beat Mahmood by 11 votes, 2,071 to 2,060. Mahmood, a Hamtramck City Councilman, paid for the hand recount of ballots.

Wayne County election workers spent nearly all day Tuesday recounting the ballots. The new results were approved by the Wayne County Board of Canvassers Tuesday afternoon and will be posted online on Wayne County Clerk's website.

The next mayor of Hamtramck, a city of 28,000, is scheduled to take office January 1.

The election is now a "done deal,"

See Full Page