Two Chaldean candidates vie for Sterling Heights city council seats

From left: Paul Manni and Steven Bahoura

By Paul Natinsky

Paul Manni, 26, and Steven Bahoura, 42, hope to increase Chaldean representation on Sterling Heights City Council this fall. Both candidates want to give the substantial Chaldean population in the city of 132,000 an amplified voice.

“My goal is to represent the community. Be the voice for those who cannot speak,” said Manni, who works in the cellular phone and real estate industries and has interests in his family’s grocery store.

Manni said many Chaldean residents in Sterling Heights need help understanding business and property tax hikes and further assistance in lowering rates. “I have an issue with the elected officials and the lack of transparency in the city right now,” said Bahoura. He also thinks, “Our pensions and emergency funds are underfunded.”

Bahoura has issues with the City Council’s political direction. He says, “(the council position) is a non-partisan seat and it’s supposed to be non-partisan, but in fact they do act very partisan with the left-liberal ideology that they are bringing to the city.” Bahoura said he hopes to prevent Sterling Heights from becoming like Portland or Seattle, which he said suffer from Antifa-influenced violence.

The race is crowded and bigger than in past election cycles. Fifteen candidates—including incumbents—will vie for six council seats in an August 3 primary that will narrow the field for a November 2 runoff election. Manni says this is the city’s first primary election and that terms have been lengthened from two years to four, another first.

Among the major issues facing the city, both candidates say they want to reduce wasteful spending.

Manni said, “What I love personally, is our parks, ponds, etc., make sure they are clean, make sure they are maintained, make sure Sterling Heights is a beautiful city.”

As is the case with much of the state, roads are a major issue. “They neglect our roads in areas where Chaldeans live. Fourteen Mile to 16 mile and Dequindre to Van Dyke. If you go and look at those roads, they are a complete disaster,” said Bahoura.

Manni said, “None of the city council members represent the west side of Sterling Heights—Mound Road, Ryan Road, Dequindre Road. One of the biggest challenges I will face if I am elected is representing (residents living on) those three roads. The whole west side of Sterling Heights has no representation.”

Both candidates are political novices seeking their first elected office.

Bahoura’s mission is strictly one of community service. He has no aspirations to seek other political posts. His sole focus is improving life for the Chaldean community in Sterling Heights.

Manni wants to take his voice to the state Legislature or even an international post as an ambassador. In addition to English, he speaks fluent Arabic, the language spoken in his household, and Chaldean, which he largely learned through church connections and his own directed efforts.

A devout Catholic, Manni said many of his connections in the community come from his involvement with Holy Martyrs Chaldean Church, where he has reached out to community members of all ages and made efforts to expand his knowledge of Chaldean culture and history. “I’m a 75-year-old trapped inside a 26-year-old’s body,” he says.

Manni is building his name in the community through the church-based community in which he is enmeshed. He is also reaching out to first responders and veterans, whom he says are venerated members of the community.

After being “in and out of trouble” as a youth, Bahoura, a realtor and investor, opened his first business at age 21. He has lived in Sterling Heights since 2003. He’s ramping up his campaign with door-knocking campaign.

As Michigan’s fourth largest city—behind Detroit, Grand Rapids and Warren, and ahead of Ann Arbor, Lansing and Flint—the issues and constituencies in Sterling Heights promise to get more complex and diverse over time.

With this year’s election looking more like a horse race than a city council contest, both candidates will have to work hard to emerge from a large field packed with hard-to-beat incumbents for the chance to bring a louder voice to the city’s Chaldean community.