Aaron Miller calls for Frank Perez to resign, concede November election

Sturgis City Commissioner Aaron Miller released his first public statement since the findings of the investigation that he, along with Vice Mayor Jeff Mullins, brought to the commission after failing to censure and remove Mayor Frank Perez multiple times. At the time, the two alleged Perez broke the law and was no longer fit to serve as mayor.  

The investigation later concluded that Perez violated Chapter IX, Section 4(n) of the City Charter and “acted in a manner inconsistent” with Section 1 of the Commission Procedural Policy. 

After a closed session during their September 23 meeting, the Sturgis City Commission voted to release the findings of the external investigation. That was the final step after a months-long dispute between a divided commission. Miller and Mullins both presented motions to remove and censure Perez, usually joined in votes by Commissioners Justin Wickey and Dan Boring. This group was in direct opposition to Commissioners Richard Bir, Cathi Abbs, Marvin Smith, and former commissioner Linda Harrington. The second group of commissioners, including Perez, met outside of public meetings and discussed allegations from a city employee against former City Manager Andrew Kuk.

Watershed Voice previously reported on the results of the investigation which were released and can be accessed here.

City Manager Andrew Kuk announced his resignation during the April 22 meeting, which Miller says is a direct result of the secret meetings between commissioners. During those meetings, as found by the investigation, Perez said he “had the votes” to remove Kuk, a statement Perez later said was not true and that he regrets. That statement by Perez and its implications, Miller says, is one of the reasons for Kuk’s resignation. The investigation does not explicitly state whether Perez and other commissioners’ wrongdoings directly led to Kuk’s resignation. 

Miller, however, disagrees.

“I have watched a long history of commissioner mistreatment of Mr. Kuk that culminated in these events. It has not just been this one event. His resignation was announced on the same night that the details of the secret meeting all spilled out before the entire commission, shortly after Mr. Kuk learned about the various details as well. There can be no coincidence,” Commissioner Miller wrote to Watershed Voice. 

Miller added he believes the allegations against Kuk shared at the March 24 “secret meeting,” would not have been sufficient to merit Kuk’s termination. 

“Now made clear by the investigation, Mayor Perez stated to Attorney Reed that he had the votes to remove Mr. Kuk as city manager, the pinnacle statement of them all,” Miller wrote. “He admitted weeks later that he had lied when he said that, but the damage in that time was already done. That Mayor Perez had the votes to fire Andrew [Kuk] was understandably relayed from Attorney Reed to Mr. Kuk and also to the commissioners not at the secret meeting. When Attorney Reed informed Mr. Kuk of the news, that amounted to a clear threat of force from Frank Perez. Essentially, ‘You had better resign by choice or we’ll just do it ourselves.’ To me it is abundantly clear how Perez’s actions led to the resignation in question.” 

Miller maintains that Kuk would likely still be city manager of Sturgis even if the allegations were litigated through the proper channels, which could not happen once Perez violated the law. 

Commissioner Miller released a full statement in which he calls for Perez to concede his race for reelection, and urges residents to join him in this call. The full statement can be viewed below:

Public Response to the Released Investigative Report Made Public by the Sturgis City

Commission at Its Regular Meeting on September 23, 2026

Aaron G. Miller

October 11, 2026

*** All of the responses included in this publication are mine individually. None of what is written here represents any opinions of any other commissioner and certainly not of the Sturgis City Commission as a whole and these opinions are not to be construed in that way. These statements are also not said on behalf of the City of Sturgis as an entity, but rather just on my own behalf alone as an individual commissioner.***

I am unfortunately unable to be at the October 14 meeting of the Sturgis City Commission. I have been carefully weighing what response to issue after our last commission meeting and the words below represent that measured response that I would like to have shared ahead of the upcoming meeting:

“The city’s investigation report, which I encourage the public to examine for themselves, clearly shows a mayor who is willing to hold secret meetings, lie on behalf of even his allies on the commission, and exert unauthorized pressure on the city’s highest-ranked employee to force him to resign. Those actions have now cost the city $280,000, a capable city manager, and the future ability to hire a new effective city manager. Regardless of what the report determined, it paints a clear portrait of two sets of commissioners. One set holds secret meetings not announced to the public, coordinating their actions outside the public eye and causing destructive consequences for this city. The other set of commissioners respects the law, abides by the city charter, listens to the city commission’s legal counsel with sober consideration, and does not hold secret meetings or threaten forced resignations without due process. The respect of our laws and city charter has been stressed by our legal counsel not just once, but annually at our commission organizational meeting and many times besides.

To all those who will continue to be affected by decisions by this commission: based on the released report, I fully expect you will be judged and decisions will be made about you and about the governance of this city outside the meetings that are publicly posted and held at city hall. The report shows a pattern of meetings held over secret breakfasts, through hidden text messages, in private business offices, in the dark and out of the public eye. These secret proceedings will have destructive consequences just like they did in April because they deprive the public and the entire commission of being able to take part properly. I swore a solemn oath to uphold the law and thus the residents of this city have my word that I will never take part in such things.

Frank Perez should not be the mayor of Sturgis. There is no defensible reason at this point to say that he should be. His actions have directly led to cascading consequences that don’t just fix themselves. He has even stated to the public on the record that, if given the opportunity to either follow what’s right in his eyes or follow the law when they diverge, he will choose not to follow the law. A standard employee whose actions cost a company a few hundred thousand dollars would lose his or her job in a parallel case. Frank Perez should therefore resign as a city commissioner effective immediately and concede his November 3 Precinct 4 election for the good of Sturgis. I call on him to resign and accordingly I ask other public officials and residents of Sturgis to join me in calling for the same. Without a response from the public, I am concerned that Mayor Perez and his club of commissioners will only grow more emboldened in their behavior.

In closing, I realize the need for peace and for a move forward as a city. The investigative report is now open to the public and the damages to the public interest and financial damages to the taxpayers are now self-evident. Other than when asked by members of the media or my constituents, and even then only under very careful consideration, this statement will conclude my public comments on the matter. It now remains for the residents of Sturgis to determine what they want to do with the information that has now been released to them.”

On October 2, Mayor Frank Perez released a statement in which he accepted the results of the investigation and hopes to rebuild trust. The full statement can be viewed below:

Mayor – Frank Perez – Direct, Humble, and Accountability-Focused

As Mayor of Sturgis, my commitment to this community has always guided me through three decades of service. However, when faced with the allegations raised in March 2026, I allowed my initial feelings of frustration and confusion to cloud my judgment. For those actions—and for the impact they had—I offer my sincere and unreserved apologies to the City Commissioners, City staff, my family, and the residents of Sturgis.

I fully accept the recommendations in the investigation report and am committed to completing all required training. Moving forward, my priority is to work constructively alongside my follow commission colleagues to rebuild trust, strengthen our processes, and serve our community with the transparency and integrity you deserve. Sturgis will remain a vibrant, welcoming home where local businesses thrive, grow and where every resident is heard and valued.

Respectfully Submitted,

Frank Perez | Mayor

The Sturgis City Commission will meet this Wednesday, October 14 at 6 p.m. for a regular business meeting. This is the commission’s first meeting since the investigation results were released. There are no agenda items related to the investigation or its results. Watershed Voice will provide coverage of that meeting as well as the continued ramifications of the investigation.

Maxwell Knauer is a staff writer for Watershed Voice.