University of Maryland students are casting ballots this week on a campus-wide referendum that asks whether University System of Maryland regent Tom McMillen should step down after his name surfaced in newly released Jeffrey Epstein records. The vote is symbolic because regents are appointed by state lawmakers, but it has sharpened a broader campus debate over accountability and how alumni ties should factor into university governance. The referendum is unfolding as tensions rise over antisemitism on campus and as university leaders tout ongoing investigations.
Documents released this year by federal authorities include brief 2013 email exchanges that mention McMillen and helped spark the student push. The public release of Epstein-related materials was widely covered and includes a Jan. 2013 note stating that “Tom McMillen ... asked about” Epstein, along with a Feb. 2013 exchange in which Epstein asked when McMillen would be in New York and McMillen replied, “I just got back from Costa Rica and heading to cabo in a week.” Those records are viewable in the Epstein Files and were part of a January tranche of releases reported by AP.
McMillen pushes back
McMillen has rejected the criticism, calling the Epstein controversy “just a smoke screen, a Trojan horse” and arguing that the referendum is politically driven, according to The Baltimore Banner. In an open letter he described his interactions with Epstein as “limited, decades-old, and tangential” and said they were being twisted to fit a narrative. McMillen, a former U.S. representative and professional basketball player, is listed as a current member of the University System of Maryland’s Board of Regents on the system roster (University System of Maryland).
Students push a symbolic ouster
Hasan Islam, the SGA speaker pro tempore, said he was taken aback to find a regent in the Epstein files and called McMillen’s emails the “smoking gun,” according to The Baltimore Banner. The Student Government Association passed a resolution last month calling for McMillen’s resignation and has urged other student governments across the system to weigh similar steps. The SGA’s leadership lineup and past resolutions are posted on the UMD SGA site, and the group’s campus advocacy has been covered by The Diamondback.
Why the referendum cannot force his removal
Even if a majority of students vote for McMillen to go, the referendum has no legal power to remove a regent. Members of the University System of Maryland’s Board of Regents are installed through the state’s political appointment process, not by campus elections. The system lists McMillen as a current, second-term regent on its roster, so any change to his status would rest with the appointing authorities, not student voters. That setup has led student organizers to present the ballot as a pressure tactic aimed at lawmakers and alumni rather than a binding personnel move.
What happens next
The College Park vote was scheduled to wrap up this week, and SGA leaders say their aim is to force a public reckoning over who sits on the boards that run public universities. The Justice Department’s release of millions of Epstein-related pages in January put fresh material into circulation and renewed scrutiny of a wide range of public figures, as reported by AP. McMillen remains on the Board of Regents, and no appointing authority has announced any change.
Whether the student vote will spur lawmakers to act is unclear, but the tally offers critics a visible record of campus opposition. At a university that frequently touts its role as a training ground for civic life, the referendum is serving as both a policy argument and a live-fire exercise in student political voice.
