Ernest Page facts for kids

Ernest Page (born around 1942) is a former member of the Orlando, Florida, City Council. He served as Orlando's temporary mayor for a short time in 2005. This happened when the elected mayor, Buddy Dyer, was dealing with legal issues. After those issues were resolved, Page returned to his job on the City Council. He was an important figure because he was the first African-American to serve as mayor of Orlando. Later in his career, he faced legal problems related to his time in public office.

Ernest Page's Early Life and Education

Ernest Page was born in Orlando, Florida. His parents were Arizona and Edoras Page. His father was a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal church.

Page went to Jones High School and graduated in 1960. He then continued his education, earning a bachelor's degree from Morehouse College in 1964. He also earned a master's degree in mathematics from Atlanta University and another master's degree in business from Nova University.

Serving on the Orlando City Council

Ernest Page, who is African-American, was first elected to the Orlando City Council in the early 1980s. The City Council is a group of elected officials who make decisions for the city. He left office during his first term due to some legal trouble.

He was elected to the City Council again in 1996. He won re-election in 2000 and 2004, showing that people trusted him to represent them.

Becoming Interim Mayor

In March 2005, Ernest Page was serving as the mayor pro tem. This means he was the temporary leader of the City Council, ready to step in if the mayor couldn't serve. At that time, Mayor Buddy Dyer was facing charges related to his election.

Because of these charges, Mayor Dyer was temporarily removed from office. Ernest Page then stepped in as the interim mayor. An interim mayor is someone who serves as mayor for a short time until the elected mayor can return or a new mayor is chosen. Page was the interim mayor for about six weeks. On April 19, the charges against Mayor Dyer were dropped, and he was able to return to his position as mayor.

Legal Challenges and Later Life

On March 1, 2006, Ernest Page faced new legal issues. He was arrested on charges of political corruption. Political corruption means using a public office for personal gain or for the benefit of a specific group, rather than for the good of everyone.

In September 2006, he was found responsible for bribery and official misconduct. Bribery is when someone offers or accepts something valuable to influence a decision. Official misconduct means that a public official misused their power. Page was found to have threatened to stop a building project unless the developer gave a part of the project to a non-profit group he was involved with.

After this, he was sentenced to 42 months, which is about three and a half years, in prison. Following his sentencing in December 2006, Governor Jeb Bush officially removed Page from his city office.

Page tried to appeal his conviction in a federal court, but he lost the appeal in March 2008. He began his prison sentence in June 2008. He was released from prison in 2011, after serving about three years of his sentence. He spent most of his prison time at Marion Correctional Institution in Marion County, Florida.