A.G. Gancarski
Monday evening saw many of the candidates from Jacksonville House Districts 13 and 14 tangle at a forum downtown.
From House District 13, incumbent Reggie Fullwood had fellow Dems Lee Brown and J.R. Gaillot to contend with, as well as Republicans Mark Griffin and Keith Walters.
And from HD 14, a more truncated group: Democrats Gracie McCastler and Leslie Jean-Bart, along with GOP nominee Chris Whitfield.
8 candidates. One stage. It was a battle royale, but notable because two of the most serious candidates, and the leading fundraisers in the races — Tracie Davis in HD 13, Kim Daniels in HD 14 — were not in attendance.
Still, the forum discussion was spirited, including urban decay, including body cameras and Black Lives Matter, and including, inevitably, Fullwood’s charges.
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After Brown, Gaillot, and Walters gave intro statements, Fullwood was up, giving his history since 1999 in Jacksonville City Council and in Tallahassee.
“It’s easy to run, but it’s hard to serve,” Fullwood said, before moderator Tia Mitchell cut him off.
Pastor Griffin spoke about his work at Eureka Garden.
“Check our track records, and what we do in the future [can be determined] by what we’ve done in the past,” Griffin said.
Griffin and Fullwood would be the pairing to watch.
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Then, intros from the HD 14 candidates.
Whitfield said nothing had been done for the district, from Tallahassee, for 16 years.
McCastler said “in the community, I have already been a voice for political issues … for the last five years, I have gone to Tallahassee” regarding bills, lobbying legislators.
Jean-Bart noted that she was endorsed by Mia Jones, giving her biography as Congresswoman Brown, who had endorsed her only to back Kim Daniels in the end, looked on from the front row.
“Look at my record. Ask others. And you will see I have been doing the job,” Jean-Bart said.
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The first question revolved around the lack of investment on the Northside by our government, and how to address “further urban decay.”
Gaillot kicked it off, saying he had a “track record of creating jobs in the district,” including manufacturing guns for law enforcement.
He vowed to address “credit access,” saying African-Americans and Latinos have a hard time getting loans.
Walters spotlighted the lack of capital, saying that workforce development programs, along with infrastructure, would bring businesses.
Griffin talked of “being more intentional” in creating jobs, while ensuring young people have the skills they need.
The Republican got applause for that. And soon enough, the forum got some heat to it.
Fullwood pointed out he is the “only elected person here,” adding that a “lack of consistency of funding” has negatively impacted job creation.
Enterprise and empowerment zones being phased out, Fullwood added, are impacting “jobs in the neighborhood” for companies like Swisher, the cigar company.
Incentives and tax breaks drive jobs into the urban core. Along with education, Fullwood said.
Griffin noted that “you have an opportunity to put a Republican in Tallahassee,” with Fullwood saying “Republicans are like sheep in Tallahassee” in terms of issues important to the community.
Whitfield, a Republican, noted that he disagreed with the GOP gutting Enterprise Florida, and talked of “do boys” in Tallahassee in both parties.
Jean-Bart got fired up.
“I will not go to Tallahassee and talk about our district the way it has been talked about tonight,” Jean-Bart said, regarding the characterizations of “blight” and “crime.”
Jean-Bart took aim at the school to prison pipeline, adding that “if we build up our workforce, the companies will come.”
“I will be a champion for the district and everything it has to offer,” Jean-Bart said to applause.
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Body cameras and independent investigations of police officers came up next, in the context of Black Lives Matter.
Walters, the one white guy on the stage, said he’d support body cameras, but not a citizen review board, though an “appointed citizen” on police review boards worked for him.
The crowd murmured.
Fullwood talked of having the conversation with his kids that many black men have to have with their kids, before defending cameras.
“Body cameras are critical,” Fullwood said, and part of “total judicial reform,” including taking a hard look at eliminating direct file.
Fullwood also backs an “independent review board.”
Griffin agrees with Fullwood on those issues, saying that it’s essential to “bring the community and the police together.”
“With everything that’s happening, we need to make sure safeguards are in place, both for police and for the community,” Griffin said.
McCastler got a subdued reaction for her “all lives matter” statement, but supports cameras and civilian review boards as something that could work.
Jean-Bart checked McCastler, saying she is “comfortable saying ‘black lives matter’,” noting that there are issues with data collection among law enforcement, and “clear racial bias” in “Jacksonville and other large law enforcement agencies.”
“You can’t have a conversation” about law enforcement “until you tell the truth about what’s happening in the community.”
Jean-Bart noted that selective enforcement exists on issues ranging from busted taillights to drug busts, and she got sustained applause after she wrapped.
Gaillot then hit Griffin, wanting to know if Griffin supported Donald Trump, contending that Trump said Black Lives Matter is a terrorist organization.
Fullwood followed up, calling Trump an “outright racist,” and wanting to know if Republicans on the stage actually were willing to say they supported him.
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Then, the elephant in the room: Fullwood’s fourteen federal counts.
“I pled not guilty for a reason,” Fullwood said, adding that “one of the reasons I decided to run is the injustice in the community.”
“When this first came out, I took a step back and considered what I was going to do,” Fullwood said.
The community encouraged him, and “that’s why I decided to run for re-election.”
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