A recall petition targeting Hamtramck Board of Education member Regan Watson was recently approved by county officials and petitions are now being circulated.
By Charles Sercombe
After over a year absence from Hamtramck Public School Board meetings, Boardmember Regan Watson returned this past December.
But now, there are some in the community who want Watson to go on a permanent leave.
A recall petition targeting Watson was recently approved by Wayne County Election Commission.
The petition, filed by Hemyar Al-Jamali, who is a member of the Hamtramck Zoning Board of Appeals, accuses Watson of the following:
• Failing to attend board meetings since May, 2023
• Failing to respond to emails, certified mail and phone calls from boardmembers
• Being censured in February 2024 for failing to attend meetings and deliberate dereliction of duties
The Review reached out to Watson via her district email for a comment, but she did not respond.
According to the school district’s records, prior to last December’s meeting, Watson has not attended a meeting since March 2023. That was a month after a majority of board members voted to remove her as board treasurer, a position she had held for a number of years.
The reason for her removal as treasurer in 2023, which happened just a month after her being reappointed by the board, was not entirely clear.
(Watson was recently re-appointed to the position of board treasurer in this January’s board meeting.)
As for Watson’s absence, the board of education does not have an attendance policy for board members.
Also, according to district records, there is no record of Watson receiving a monthly financial stipend.
At last December’s board meeting, Watson was asked pointedly by former Board president Jihan Aiyash if she plans on resuming to attend meetings. Watson confirmed that she did.
Although Watson has not explained her absence, there was wide speculation that it had something to do with the treatment she received from Aiyash.
Aiyash was not re-elected to office last November. Aiyash also spent a good portion of 2022 not attending board meetings. She also has not offered an explanation to the public for the reasons that she missed meetings.
During that period, Aiyash was paid almost $700 for the board meetings, including those she missed, in 2022, according to district records.
Al-Jamali, the person who started the recall, has a connection to the Aiyash family. He previously worked on a past campaign for Aiyash’s brother, Abraham Aiyash, in his run for state representative.
To get a recall ballot to qualify for an election, at least 1,200 valid signatures are needed from registered Hamtramck voters. Recall petitions are already being circulated in local mosques.
If enough valid signatures are collected, the earliest date allowed by the state for municipalities to hold a special election is this coming May 6.
Watson’s term ends in 2026. If Watson is recalled, board policy calls for board members to appoint a replacement.
While Jihan Aiyash finished as the runner-up in third place in November’s election, where two new board members were elected, it is not an automatic given that she would be appointed.
Hamtramck social media was quick to pick up on the recall effort.
Habeb Aljawfi, who identifies himself as a “Hamtramck police press media activist,” posted a comment on the Hamtramck Square Facebook page, saying:
“Not only was she neglecting her responsibilities, she was also pushing the LGBTQ agenda. When the council had a Muslim majority, it disappeared for two years but retained its position and salary. Now that the council is no longer a Muslim majority, it is back again trying to push the LGBTQ agenda again. We should have a school board member with more responsibility.”
It is unclear what he meant by “pushing” an LGBTQ agenda.
The Review reached out to Aljawfi for an explanation but he did not respond.
Posted Jan. 31, 2025