Several student groups on campus are seeking the recall and impeachment of A.S. President George Chi Ioi Lo in a letter originally submitted for the Week 7 A.S. Senate meeting that has since been pushed to Week 9. It catalogs several grievances regarding Lo’s conduct during his tenure, including alleged “mistreatment,” “retaliation,” and “harassment.” The letter is endorsed by Movimiento Estudiantil Chicanola de Aztlan, Students for Justice in Palestine at UCSD, Groundwork Books, Muslim Student Union, and the Ethnic Studies Undergraduate Community. It has also been reposted by several prominent UCSD-affiliated accounts including the Black Pre-Med Society, SOHIL, and CLX Studies Archives. 

The letter asks for Lo’s recall, contending that he is “guilty of ‘improper’ and ‘unethical use of [the presidency].’” The authors summarize five key instances of misconduct, which they assert are grounds for impeachment. Lo has yet to formally respond to the letter itself, but has addressed and denied several of the cases represented in the letter at the time of their occurrences.

The first instance lists Lo’s behavior earlier this year when he was reported mistreating Housing Dining Hospitality student workers while waiting for his food at the Sixth Dining Hall. The second occurrence refers to Lo’s behavior and refusal to apologize for his behavior during a senate meeting presentation. 

The third and fifth items both speak to alleged occurrences of retaliation against the sitting AVP of EDI, Leticia Guzman, for signing the call for apology letter from the second complaint and for not reposting a Tritons for Israel Walkout advertisement. Lo told The UCSD Guardian that he believes this claim of retaliation is misrepresented and that his issuing of formal warnings to Guzman was warranted per the A.S. bylaws and approved by his pro-staff advisors.

The fourth instance describes “irresponsive and dismissive” behavior towards SJP when they came to speak at the Nov. 1 senate meeting. The letter authors write that they were denied speaking time, which was instead given to Tritons for Israel. Lo told The Guardian that he actually advocated for the SJP speakers, and believes that, without his efforts, they would not have been permitted to speak at all.

The groups plan to speak at the Week 9 Senate meeting to encourage senators to vote for Lo’s impeachment. Members from the organizations that signed the letter and some of the people from the letter’s grievance list are expected to appear, and they are additionally encouraging members of the public to show up to comment. 

The groups are pursuing two avenues to remove Lo from office: through Week 9’s impeachment vote, and in the case of the vote failing, the more long-term recall petition process through the A.S. Judicial Board. If Lo is removed, the current EVP will temporarily fill the position and the presidency will go to a special election.

At the vote, two-thirds of the Senate must vote in favor of impeachment for it to pass. The matter must then be approved by the Judicial Board, which has not yet made any rulings this year. Though the board is required to seat seven members, it appears to currently have only three as of its last decision in October 2022.

The long-term recall petition process is a written appeal directed to the Judicial Board to approve a recall effort of Lo and contains the same content as the publicly posted letter and senate agenda item. As of this article’s publishing, the board has yet to rule, but is expected to return judgment by the night of Monday, Nov. 20. If the recall is approved, the groups must collect a certain amount of signatures supporting Lo’s recall in two weeks in order for the process to continue. 

The UCSD Guardian will continue to update this story as it progresses.