A sitting Flint city councilman is heading to felony trial on charges he lied about where he lived.
Leon El-Alamin, who represents Flint’s First Ward, was bound over to Genesee County Circuit Court on September 9th after a district court judge ruled prosecutors had presented enough evidence to proceed. The charge, one felony count of false swearing under Michigan election law, carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
Prosecutors allege El-Alamin falsely swore he was a Flint resident when he filed paperwork to run for city council. According to originally reported details, Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton has said El-Alamin was actually living in neighboring Mt. Morris Township at the time, not inside Flint city limits. Investigators were reportedly told by a tenant at the Flint address that El-Alamin owned the property but did not live there.
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The alleged offense occurred on April 12th, 2024, fewer than three weeks after El-Alamin joined the Flint City Council. Council members had appointed him on March 25th, 2024, to fill the First Ward seat left vacant by the death of longtime Councilman Eric Mays. He later won a November 2024 special election to serve out the remainder of Mays’ term.
El-Alamin was initially charged in July with the single felony count. Following his arraignment, he was released on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond. The September 9th preliminary examination was the case’s first major legal hurdle, with the district court judge tasked only with determining whether enough evidence existed to move forward. That ruling does not establish guilt.
El-Alamin has denied any wrongdoing. In a statement provided to MLive, he said he was “confident that he will be cleared of any wrongdoing.” He added, “I have always believed in the rule of law and due process,” and said he would continue to fight the case through the legal system. He has also described the accusations as a political distraction.
The stakes extend well beyond the courtroom. El-Alamin is currently running for Flint’s Third Ward seat in the November general election. Under the Flint city charter, any sitting council member convicted of a felony while in office must forfeit their seat. A conviction would end his tenure immediately.
The case now moves into Genesee County Circuit Court, where prosecutors must prove the charge beyond a reasonable doubt at trial. WNEM, which covered the September 9th hearing, did not report a scheduled trial date. Michigan’s false swearing statute, which covers the alleged filing of a false affidavit under oath to qualify as a candidate for elective office, sets five years as the ceiling for any sentence, imposed only after a conviction is secured.
