Calls mount for Palm Bay Council member to resign or be removed over anti-Indian immigrant posts

Elected leaders from both sides of the political aisle and at all levels of government are putting Palm Bay Council member Chandler Langevin on blast over a string of anti-Indian social media comments he has posted in recent weeks.

Everyone speaking out is denouncing his words. Some are calling on Gov. Ron DeSantis to step in and remove him.

That includes Langevin’s peers on the City Council, all of whom voted to ask the Governor to suspend him^[1] Thursday and request that Republican state Sen. Debbie Mayfield, who has also called for his suspension^[2], to file a complaint with the Florida Commission on Ethics.

Langevin, a 33-year-old Republican veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who was elected in November^[3], has posted numerous incendiary, racist and xenophobic statements online though his X account^[4]. His most frequent targets in recent weeks have been immigrants from India and their descendants.

In a Sept. 22 post sharing another account’s comment of “Go be Indian in India,” Langevin wrote, “America for Americans. India for Indians^[5].” The next day, he shared a post by Delray Beach Police Chief Michael Banks about an Indian national in Florida on a student visa who was arrested for attempting to engage in sexual acts with a minor.

“It is not our responsibility^[6] to educate the third world,” Langevin wrote.

On Sept. 26, the self-professed “Proud Southerner” wrote in one post that “Indians are destroying the South^[7].” He wrote in another post the same day, ‘Deport every Indian immediately^[8],” sharing a video detailing a widely reported incident in which an illegal Indian immigrant drove an 18-wheeler on the Florida Turnpike and caused a crash that killed three people.

On Tuesday, one day after Palm Bay Mayor Rob Medina penned a letter denouncing his words without naming him, Langevin wrote on X^[9] that he received support from “working class Americans and parents” before doubling down on his comments.

“I will not stand down from my current position,” he wrote. “The immigration system works overtime against Americans and Indian immigrants are at the forefront of its abuse to enrich Indians at the expense of Americans. … I will not apologize. I will not resign. I will not be removed from office.”

He didn’t^[10] stop^[11] there^[12], writing, “There is not a single Indian that cares about the United States” and, on his birthday^[13] Thursday, “Today is my birthday and all I want is for (President Donald Trump) to revoke every Indian visa and deport them immediately. America is for Americans.”

Republican U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, sharing a news report about the Thursday City Council meeting, said on X that there is “no place^[14] for this kind of hate in Florida.”

“As Governor and now as U.S. Senator, I’ve been proud to stand with our state’s incredible Indian American community, who are proud Americans and value the ideas that make our country great,” he wrote.

Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Haridopolos praised Indian Americans as “proud Americans who love our country.” Republican state Reps. Brian Hodgers of Viera and Monique Miller of Palm Bay shared similar statements.

Langevin briefly ran against Miller for the House District 33 seat in 2023, but ultimately dropped out and endorsed her^[15].

House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell said Friday that Langevin’s “extremist comments are ignorant, wrong, and anti-American.”

“Langevin has a history of bigoted attacks against people that don’t look like him,” she said. “He has shown, again and again, that he is unfit to be a leader in his community. I hope the good people of Palm Bay reject him and his ignorance, and that he can take the time to educate himself about his neighbors and let go of this hate.”

Hundreds of residents, many from Brevard County’s Indian American community, packed Palm Bay City Hall for the five-hour meeting Thursday, most urging Langevin’s removal. A handful defended his speech as protected political expression.

In remarks before the meeting, Langevin appeared to try to employ damage control, writing that “patriotic Americans that happen to be of Indian heritage (are) Americans” and that his “comments were not directed at them.” He added that his stance targets immigration policy, especially the H-1B visa.

During the meeting, he said he would consider private apologies but added, “I’m going to be here for another three years. Get used to it.”

Council member Kenny Johnson, who made the motion to seek action from DeSantis, said Langevin’s offer to say sorry behind closed doors was insufficient.

“If you’re going to say something publicly,” he said, “you should apologize publicly.”

Council member Mike Hammer said that while free speech is protected, he viewed the job of Palm Bay government as upholding the “safety, dignity and trust of the people we represent.”

Others calling for Langevin’s ouster include Jacksonville Democratic state Rep. Angie Nixon, former Brevard County School Board member Jennifer Jenkins and the Hindu American Foundation^[16], which called his comments “blatantly hateful.”

So far, DeSantis has not indicated if or how he’ll respond.

The furor comes after a separate controversy flared in Miami-Dade County following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

Just hours after Kirk’s murder, Palmetto Bay Council member Steve Cody faced bipartisan demands for his resignation^[17] over a Facebook post in which he wrote that Kirk was “a fitting sacrifice to our Lords: (gun manufacturer) Smith & Wesson. Hallowed be their names.”

Cody, too, faced a unanimous vote^[18] from his Town Hall colleagues calling for his resignation, and DeSantis’ Office later confirmed it was looking into whether it could legally remove him. Like Langevin, Cody refuses to voluntarily step down. Unlike Langevin, he quickly deleted the post and apologized for what he wrote.