FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Rod Velez, who was elected to the Broward County Public School Board but was never sworn in, is now suing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, along with the appointee who replaced him.
Back in November, Velez won the vote for the District 1 seat and planned to be sworn in late last month.
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Velez had been waiting for clarification regarding a past felony and whether it would disqualify him from office. He pled guilty to aggravated battery in 1995.
Finally on December 22, Velez was set to be sworn in, but at the last minute, the Governor’s Office announced the governor had declared Velez’s seat vacant and that it would be DeSantis who selected a replacement.
Shortly after the initial announcement about the vacancy, Gov. DeSantis picked Daniel Foganholi to take the District 1 seat.
Foganholi had just finished a temporary term on the school board after being selected by DeSantis to replace Rosalind Osgood in District 5. Osgood was elected to the Florida State Senate.
Now, Velez is filing a lawsuit against both DeSantis and the newly-appointed Foganholi, seeking a judicial finding that Velez is entitled to hold the Broward County School Board District 1 seat.
Additionally, Velez is seeking a court order to be sworn into office. The lawsuit was filed in Broward County Circuit Court on Monday.
This is the second time Foghanholi is appointed to the school board. In his previous appointment, Foghanholi led the charge to fire Broward Schools Superintendent Vickie Cartwright.
Foganholi ran for Coral Springs city commission and lost. Foganholi doesn’t live in the school board district he is representing, which is allowed by law since he was appointed.
Now, Velez is filing a lawsuit against DeSantis and Foganholi, seeking a judicial finding that Velez is entitled to hold the Broward County School Board District 1 seat.
Additionally, Velez is seeking a court order to be sworn into office.
The lawsuit was filed in Broward County Circuit Court on Monday.
This is the second time Foghanholi has been appointed to the school board. In his previous appointment, Foghanholi led the charge to fire Broward Schools Superintendent Vickie Cartwright.
Foganholi ran for a seat on the Coral Springs City Commission in last year’s election and lost. Foganholi does not live in the school board district he is currently representing.