The trend in UF's Student Government seems to be that absence makes the heart grow fonder.
At Tuesday's meeting, the Senate decided that a senator missing half of the meetings for the summer B term does not warrant his removal from office.
After missing two Senate meetings this semester, Sen. Matt Michel was asked to resign for nonattendance.
Michel, of the Gator Party, appealed to the Rules and Ethics Committee, which leads investigations of senators and of which he is a member, and asked the committee to expunge the absences and allow him to stay in Senate.
The committee agreed, but the decision needed to be approved by the Senate to go into effect.
Sen. Danielle D'Oyley, Rules and Ethics Committee chairwoman, said Michel planned to return in the third week of the summer B term.
However, since he was absent Tuesday as well, he has missed three of the term's six meetings. With no replacement senator appointed, no one was present to represent Michel's constituents - graduate students - in voting or debate.
Sen. Jimmy Carlsen, of the Gator Party, argued that Michel should remain a senator because he was taking a class necessary to complete his degree in Peru and would be returning Wednesday.
Opposing senators, largely from the Orange and Blue Party, argued the removal of absences from a senator's record should be reserved for unavoidable, unforeseen emergencies, such as a family tragedy.
Sen. Cain Norris, Orange and Blue Party member, said the repeal of the forced resignation would send a poor message to other senators: "You don't need to have rules and ethics as long as you're on Rules and Ethics."
Nonetheless, a large majority of the Senate voted to approve the committee's repeal and keep Michel in his seat.
