Civil rights lawyer Cecile M. Scoon, Esq. has made history as the first Black woman elected to lead the League of Women Voters of Florida.
Scoon, who served as the organization’s 1st Vice President since 2018, will now serve as the board president for the statewide operations of the 101-year-old civic organization. Scoon, alongside a slate of officers and directors, was voted in on June 5th during the organization’s 38th biennial state convention.
The Harvard and University of Virginia Law graduate is honored to lead the Florida League and to carry on the organization’s mission to empower voters and defend democracy in the Sunshine State. Scoon’s 36-year law career began as an assistant staff judge advocate for the U.S. Air Force. She now serves as an owner and managing principal of Peters & Scoon Attorneys at Law in Panama City, FL.
Scoon is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. which touts other notable members such as Vice President Kamala Harris and former Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Peggy Quince. Scoon has previously held leadership positions within her local chapter of the League of Women Voters and is a life member of the Bay County Branch of the NAACP.
“Voting is the basic building block of our prized democracy. During our state convention, the League demonstrated how democracy should work when our grassroots members voted for new leadership. In doing this, League members repudiated times in the 1920s and later in the 1960s when white League members were not as welcoming to Black women.” said President Scoon. “My election was a rejection of that troubling past and an embracement of diversity, equity and inclusivity. I love the League because it is primarily a group of powerful women standing up for the rights of all. I look forward to this journey as we work to meet the many challenges of our time.”
Scoon has been recognized nationally for her work surrounding Florida’s 2018 Amendment 4 as well as for her continued advocacy for fair enfranchisement for all. In January of 2021, the Florida Bar Association awarded Scoon with a President’s Pro-Bono award. Scoon, no stranger to historic firsts, was recognized in early2021 as the first Black woman to practice law privately in Bay County, FL.
Scoon succeeds former Florida League President Patricia Brigham who served as the organization’s President since 2018. The remainder of officers voted in include Marisol Zenteno (1st Vice President) of Miami, Shawn Bartelt (2nd Vice President) of Sarasota, Patricia Drago (Secretary) of Daytona Beach and Mark Songer (Treasurer) of Key West. Elected directors include Jennifer Adams of Winter Park, Jonathan Hackley of Riviera Beach, Danielle Irwin of Tallahassee, Dr. Julie Kessel of St. Petersburg and Maegen Pierce of Orlando.