A.G. Gancarski
Jacksonville event promoter Darren Gardner has filed as a Republican in House District 13, where the incumbent is embattled Reggie Fullwood.
His website bio contains a statement that is unusual, in the world of Jacksonville politicos, for its candor: “Being a Jacksonville Nightlife, Daylife & Fine Dining Promoter is my dream job! I get paid to party!”
While many Jacksonville politicos party for free, and one or two may have been maligned as a party boss in recent campaigns, Gardner clearly takes being a party boss to a whole new level.
Gardner’s event promotion is tailored to party people from the ages of 25 to 55 who “want to network.”
When contacted by FloridaPolitics.com, Gardner noted that he was “baffled” that no one was running against Fullwood as a Republican.
Fullwood, even without the legal issues he faces, is “beatable” by Gardner, claims the Republican.
“I have ties in the community. That’s an advantage I have. The people he appeals to, I appeal to,” said Gardner.
“The same people they know, I know personally,” Gardner said, adding that the “work [he’s] done in the community” gives him additional credibility.
Gardner added that he’s been a Republican for “as long as [he] can remember,” and via addressing the uphill battle he will face in his heavily Democratic district, Gardner noted that the “Democrats have got them brainwashed.”
In addition to event promotion, Gardner has worked with “underprivileged males … kids who got no chances,” via programs such as the Black Male College Explorers, the Civil Citation Program at Edward Waters College, and via a statewide initiative between EWC and Florida A&M University working with “incarcerated males.”
A discussion of specific policy aims, if elected, proved difficult for the candidate, who promised a “huge transformation … something that’s never been done before.”
When asked to go deeper, Gardner said that he’s “not giving any specific things on laws or bills at this time … [I’ve] got to sit down with members of the party and [his] team then get with you on [my] agenda.”
