The Attorney General of the Florida A&M University’s Student Government Association called for the impeachment of the Electoral Commissioner Wednesday, Jan. 18 during a student senate meeting.
Attorney General Jeremiah Carter, a transfer public relations student from Broward County, FL, stated that Electoral Commissioner Adrienne Floyd should be impeached for not complying with a recent student senate mandate.
“If Commissioner Floyd will not comply with the mandate that was set forth, she needs to do one of three things: comply, resign, or be impeached by the student senate,” Carter stated in his address to the senate. “She needs to come before the senate and answer questions about her actions.”
Floyd was ordered by the student senate to host a new student body presidential election after she issued a memo naming Justin Bruno and Devin Harrison as the new Student Body President and Vice President in January. She, however, refused to do so in a memo sent to Senate President Brandon Johnson.
“The Electoral Commission recused ourselves from the New Election discussion until there is an administrative panel to take place with all of us who are branch head leaders and with our advisors… I will not move forward with planning the New Election to happen [sic],” said Floyd.
The call for impeachment comes after Carter reported to the senate in an emergency session Jan. 13 that the Electoral Commission had broken the law in proclaiming Bruno and Harrison winners of the election because the proper guidelines were not followed.
Should the senate take up Carter’s charge and impeach Floyd, the annual spring student body elections may be placed on hold, as the Electoral Commissioner is responsible for regulating all elections.
The Electoral Commission would also be left without a chair, being that former Deputy Electoral Commissioner Kierra Clinch is no longer enrolled at the university, according to senate Elections & Appointments Committee Chairwoman, Dajuh Sawyer. The Deputy Commissioner would normally succeed the Commissioner if she were to resign or be removed. Clinch’s replacement has yet to be confirmed.
Despite Carter’s findings, Student Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald Nelson says that Floyd’s removal is unlikely, because the court currently lacks a quorum of members.
“We would not be able to entertain an impeachment hearing or any thing for that matter until the court meets its quorum,” Nelson said.
The Student Supreme Court, which tries all impeachment cases, is required to have at least five sworn members to hear cases and conduct business. However, Justice Bobby Blackwell-Burt graduated last semester, leaving the court one justice shy of the mandatory membership.
Appointing someone to Blackwell-Burt’s seat may prove to be another point of contention, as Student Senate President Brandon Johnson said he will only recognize and confirm Supreme Court nominations from SGA President Jaylen Smith. If Floyd’s memo stands, Smith would no longer serve as Student Body President and University Trustee.
“The Senate recognizes Trustee Jaylen Smith as Student Body President and University Trustee at this time,” Johnson said. “All appointments to the court must be confirmed by the student senate and until all proper procedures are followed and new people are installed correctly by the guidelines in our documents, we will only entertain appointments made by Smith.”
Spring elections have been postponed indefinitely. SGA officials will meet with Electoral Commission to set a new date for elections to begin.