Flint City Councilman Faces Perjury Charge Over Residency Claims
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A sitting Flint city councilman is in legal trouble again.
Leon El-Alamin was arraigned on July 13, 2026.
He faces one count of violating election law by committing perjury on his affidavit.
Prosecutors say the 45-year-old falsely swore under oath that he lived within the city limits when he filed the paperwork in April.
Residency inside the city is required to run for city council.
Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said investigators checked the Mt. Morris Township neighborhood where residents reported El-Alamin had lived for years.
Police then visited the Flint address listed on his official affidavit.
They found someone else was renting the property.
El-Alamin was released on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond.
If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison or a $1,000 fine.
His name would also be removed from the ballot.
This is not his only legal problem.
El-Alamin was already scheduled to stand trial on felony assault and domestic violence charges.
That trial was set for less than three weeks before the general election.
According to court records and reporting from MLive, the alleged victim testified that on July 10, 2025, El-Alamin punched her in the head, dragged her by her hair, and choked her inside a home they shared in Mt. Morris Township.
An affidavit from the victim states she lived with him at that address from June 2023 until the day of the alleged assault.
Township police reported seeing facial lacerations and marks on the alleged victim’s neck after she called for help.
El-Alamin faces a charge of assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder, a felony, plus a misdemeanor domestic violence charge.
He is also looking at a possible habitual offender enhancement that could increase any sentence.
In March 2026, attorneys noted the alleged victim might not want to testify.
Prosecutor Leyton said he still intends to move forward with the case.
El-Alamin has maintained he is “innocent of all the charges.”
He is currently serving his first term representing Flint’s 1st Ward.
At the same time, he is campaigning for the 3rd Ward seat in the November election.
He is set to face Paradise Williams.
Beverly Biggs-Leavy, previously disqualified from the ballot, is running as a write-in.
Even if El-Alamin wins in November, a felony conviction would likely end his time in office.
Flint’s city charter requires a council member’s seat to be forfeited upon conviction of a felony while in office.
A conviction on the violence charges could bring up to 10 years in prison.
El-Alamin claims both cases are politically motivated.
Election integrity and basic residency rules exist for a reason.
Officials who seek public office are expected to follow the same laws they help enforce.
The charges against the Flint councilman will now move through the courts.
Voters in the city will be watching closely.
Benjamin Harris is a RapidReports front page contributor and editor,proud father of four.
