Writer: Joshua Andino
2 min read March 2023— With none of Jacksonville’s seven candidates for mayor securing an outright majority, the race is set to proceed to a general election runoff in May.
Seven candidates had thrown their hat in the ring, with Democrat Donna Deegan pulling in the largest share of the vote at 65,889, or 39.4%. Coming in second was Republican Daniel Davis, with 41,389 votes, or 24.7%. Deegan is a local award winning television anchor and cancer awareness advocate, while Davis is the president of the JAX Chamber. The runner-ups included Republicans Al Ferraro, who serves on the City Council, and small business owner LeAnna Gutierrez Cumber, who took home 16.2 and 7.6% of the vote, respectively.
Current Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, a Republican, is term-limited and cannot run again.
Other races heading to a runoff in May include the county property appraiser, which will see Democrat Joyce Morgan add to his 47.6% margin against Republican Jason Fischer, who won 30.7%. City Council Districts 7, 8, 9, 11 and 14 will also be heading into a general election runoff. Republicans won Districts 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6, and in many cases were merely running against other Republicans.
Thanks to Jacksonville and Duval County’s unified government, the city positions essentially double as their equivalent county positions.
For the city’s Group 1 and 2 open at-large seats, Republicans Terrance Freeman and Ron Salem won outright, securing just over 65% and 53.2% of the vote, respectively. Meanwhile, Group 5 will instead head to a runoff between Republican Chris Miller, who won 36.7% and Democrat Charles Garrison after securing 25.8% of the vote
For the mayoral runoff, Deegan will be facing off against the well-funded Davis. While her performance in the first round presents a commanding lead, it remains to be seen how Davis will rally Republicans, whose votes were split amongst three other Republican candidates. Deegan and State Senator Audrey Gibson were the only two Democrats in the running, with Gibson’s supporters only accounting for 8.6% of the vote.
Whatever the case may be when the election is finally decided in May, who ever secures Jacksonville’s top job will have to contend with a host of issues, including managing the region’s growing population and the downstream impacts it may have on both cost and quality of living, public safety as well as a potential new Jaguars stadium. Another factor to watch will be the impact of a potential endorsement from Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has yet to weigh in on the race. Many expect DeSantis to run for president and credit with helping flip Duval red in 2022. Whether an endorsement drives turnout from Republicans or energizes Democrats in opposition is something both mayoral candidates are likely strategizing around.
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