Donald Trump’s presidential campaign received an unexpected boost this week from the mayor of a small, predominantly Muslim city in Michigan.

“I believe he is the right choice for this critical time. I’ll not regret my decision no matter what the outcome would be, and I’m ready to face the consequences,” Hamtramck Mayor Amer Ghalib wrote on X.

“He asked me if I can endorse him and ask people to vote for him. I told him: ‘I’m here to talk about that and how we can make it happen,'” the Arab mayor recalled. “I then handed him an official letter with some details about our concerns and to invite him to come to Hamtramck if possible.”

Still, Ghalib’s support for Trump has been overshadowed by his history of making antisemitic and racist statements. In past social media activity, Ghalib liked comments referring to African Americans as “animalistic” and “subhuman.” He also made inflammatory remarks about Arab leaders, accusing them of being covert “Jews.”

In a 2021 Facebook post defending Trump’s role in the January 6 Capitol riots, Ghalib told his Arab American followers to compare Trump with “the leaders of your countries, who are willing to become Jewish if the president is Jewish and to abandon all national and religious reproach if ordered by the dictatorial leader!”

Despite this troubling history, Ghalib’s endorsement could potentially influence the Arab American vote in Michigan, considered to be a critical swing state in this year’s presidential election. This demographic remains a challenge for Biden, with recent polls suggesting a surprising lead for Green Party nominee Jill Stein among the majority of Arab Americans.

Stein has attracted attention for her controversial statements on the Gaza war, including accusations of Israeli “genocide” and her defense of Hamas’ attack on October 7 that resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and the abduction of 250 innocent people.