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Senate Democrats sue over Youngkin appointees kept on college boards
Last edited Wed Jun 25, 2025, 08:29 AM - Edit history (1)
EDUCATION
Senate Democrats sue over Youngkin appointees kept on college boards
Lawsuit accuses university leaders of defying General Assembly after Senate rejection vote.
BY: NATHANIEL CLINE - JUNE 24, 2025 6:13 PM
A Fairfax County court will soon weigh in on whether leaders at three of Virginia’s universities broke the rules by allowing rejected appointees to remain in their governing boards — despite Senate Democrats voting to remove them earlier this month.
The lawsuit, first reported Tuesday by the Washington Post, targets the leadership of the Virginia Military Institute, the University of Virginia and George Mason University. It asks the court to bar the contested board members from continuing to serve and declare that any board member who permits them to remain is violating their legal duties.
The dispute stems from a June 9 vote by the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee, which rejected eight of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s appointments — including former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and former state commerce and trade secretary Caren Merrick.
At the center of the clash is a standoff between Attorney General Jason Miyares and Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, who issued duelling letters to university rectors interpreting the fallout.
Miyares argued the appointees may continue to serve until the General Assembly reconvenes in January. Surovell, however, maintains that their terms ended immediately with the Senate’s vote.
{snip}
NATHANIEL CLINE
Nathaniel is an award-winning journalist who's been covering news across the country since 2007, including politics at The Loudoun Times-Mirror and The Northern Neck News in Virginia as well as sports for The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, Ohio. He has also hosted podcasts, worked as a television analyst for Spectrum Sports, and appeared as a panelist for conferences and educational programs. A graduate of Bowie State University, Nathaniel grew up in Hawaii and the United Kingdom as a military brat. Five things he must have before leaving home: his cellphone, Black Panther water bottle, hand sanitizer, wedding ring and Philadelphia Eagles keychain.
Virginia Mercury is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
Senate Democrats sue over Youngkin appointees kept on college boards
Lawsuit accuses university leaders of defying General Assembly after Senate rejection vote.
BY: NATHANIEL CLINE - JUNE 24, 2025 6:13 PM
A Fairfax County court will soon weigh in on whether leaders at three of Virginia’s universities broke the rules by allowing rejected appointees to remain in their governing boards — despite Senate Democrats voting to remove them earlier this month.
The lawsuit, first reported Tuesday by the Washington Post, targets the leadership of the Virginia Military Institute, the University of Virginia and George Mason University. It asks the court to bar the contested board members from continuing to serve and declare that any board member who permits them to remain is violating their legal duties.
The dispute stems from a June 9 vote by the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee, which rejected eight of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s appointments — including former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and former state commerce and trade secretary Caren Merrick.
At the center of the clash is a standoff between Attorney General Jason Miyares and Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, who issued duelling letters to university rectors interpreting the fallout.
Miyares argued the appointees may continue to serve until the General Assembly reconvenes in January. Surovell, however, maintains that their terms ended immediately with the Senate’s vote.
{snip}
NATHANIEL CLINE
Nathaniel is an award-winning journalist who's been covering news across the country since 2007, including politics at The Loudoun Times-Mirror and The Northern Neck News in Virginia as well as sports for The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, Ohio. He has also hosted podcasts, worked as a television analyst for Spectrum Sports, and appeared as a panelist for conferences and educational programs. A graduate of Bowie State University, Nathaniel grew up in Hawaii and the United Kingdom as a military brat. Five things he must have before leaving home: his cellphone, Black Panther water bottle, hand sanitizer, wedding ring and Philadelphia Eagles keychain.
Virginia Mercury is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.