South Miami

Costly Challenge

Ethics board opines South Miami commissioner may establish legal fund for election challenge

By Angie Hargot

The Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics unanimously opined that South Miami Commissioner Velma Palmer isn’t breaking any ethical rules by establishing a legal defense fund to pay for potentially hefty legal fees involved in fighting a lawsuit challenging her February re-election. Palmer personally is named as a co-defendant in the lawsuit against the city, filed Feb. 22 by her opponent Rene Guim, who lost to Palmer by just 24 votes.

The lawsuit was filed the same day that the Miami-Dade County Elections Department admitted that roughly 53 voters had mistakenly been sent a notice saying they could not vote in the South Miami election, because they actually lived in unincorporated Miami-Dade.

Although information on the fund itself was not made available by press time, the three-day trial challenging the election is set to begin on May 21 before Circuit Judge David Miller. Since the Feb. 12 election, the Elections Department has had to investigate Guim’s claims that still more eligible residents were kept from voting in the election.

“It was alleged that 53 voters in that city were disenfranchised because the county told them they were ineligible to vote,” ethics commission assistant advocate Miriam Ramos said at the commission’s March 26 meeting. “It will probably happen that the city of South Miami will not be responsible for these legal fees,” but Palmer would, she said, because she’s being sued as a private person.

The question of ethics was raised because the donations could be construed as contributions, making Palmer “subject to be influenced by the public.”

But “that could happen in any election,” ethics commission member Seymour Gelber argued.

Palmer is a teacher in the Miami-Dade County Public School system, and holds a degree in elementary education and masters in school guidance and counseling. She began her service with the city as vice mayor in 2004. 

Ultimately, the ethics commission ruled that the fund must be established by a third party, and run by trustees. Palmer herself cannot solicit funds, said ethics commission staff attorney Victoria Frigo.

“Originally she had anticipated the city to reimburse legal fees. The other option is this fund,” ethics commission Executive Director Robert Meyers said.

The option comes perhaps as a reprieve for a city that recently fired its city manager and currently carries six-figure balances for legal fees.

“It was my understanding that a couple of people went ahead and argued to the city that they did live there,” said political consultant Irene Secada. Although Secada was not employed by any candidate in the February election, she has worked with many area politicians on past campaigns and, since she lives in a neighboring city, keeps an eye on South Miami politics. Secada added that she did help Palmer on her first campaign after the candidate became the victim of an allegedly shady political consultant. Palmer’s is “a great story,” Secada said.

“She had just become a citizen, and it was her first election, and she won it. Now that there’s a legal challenge people have offered to help, and she doesn’t want to do anything [improper or] illegal.”

A similar Elections Department debacle occurred in Broward County that same month, where residents of at least two municipalities were discovered to have voted on another city’s ballot.

Comments? E-mail angie@miamisunpost.com