Election Commission approves recall language against Flint Councilwoman Winfrey-Carter

Flint, MI — The Genesee County Election Commission has approved recall language filed against Flint City Councilwoman Jerri Winfrey-Carter.

The commission signed off on the language, filed by former Flint City Councilman Wantwaz Davis last month, during a Nov. 6, 2023 hearing.

The petition cites Winfrey-Carter’s abstention from voting on “Resolution #230167, the yearly fiscal budget” at a special council meeting on June 8, 2023.

The filing represents Davis’ fourth attempt at gaining language approval.

His first attempt was voted down due to a lack of specificity regarding the resolution Winfrey-Carter abstained on, his second due to spelling errors, and his third because he did not use a hyphen in spelling Winfrey-Carter’s last name.

While Davis did not respond to Flint Beat’s request for comment by press time, he did provide remarks on the language approval over Facebook.

“The critics failed to realize, and or remember that I’ve always been a determined and ambitious individual, one to never give up; no matter the task nor hurdles I may have to jump, and hills to climb; by the Grace and Mercy of God,” he wrote in a Nov. 6 post.

In the same post, he also called local news media outlets, including Flint Beat, “haters” for not covering the hearing.

“Everyone is silent today when I manage to win, on my 4th attempt to recall her; and with the possibility to winning my seat back in May 2024,” the post read.

For her part, Winfrey-Carter told Flint Beat that she is confident her constituents will continue to support her through Davis’ signature gathering process ahead, and she believed that the commission had been worn down by the former councilman’s multiple recall attempts.

“I thought that they [the commission] probably just got tired,” Winfrey-Carter told Flint Beat on Nov. 14. “They just went ahead and sent it through. Because when I got up to present my argument, I touched on the fact that that sheet had eight commas. It was eight commas in that one sentence … I’ve never seen eight commas in one sentence in all of my years as an educator.”

According to the Genesee County Clerk’s Office, Davis will need 776 signatures to move Winfrey-Carter’s recall to a ballot measure.