A.G. Gancarski
Republican Ron Salem, running to replace termed-out John Crescimbeni in the Jacksonville City Council’s At-Large District 2, cleared $30,000 in February.
Salem, an establishment favorite, had the kind of donations typically associated with that status.
Among the $1,000 donors: local land use lawyer and lobbyist Steve Diebenow, whose wife hosted a Salem “meet and greet”; the Driver, McAfee, Peek & Hawthorne Law Firm; Ernie Issac; the Vestcor Companies (John Rood); a couple of groups associated with developer Toney Sleiman; the Jacksonville Kennel Club and the Orange Park Kennel Club.
Salem, whose campaign is being run by Tim Baker and Brian Hughes, is running unopposed.
A hallmark of their candidates: strong fundraising at the outset of the campaign, which can often discourage candidates without resources from jumping into the race as nuisance candidates.
Former Jacksonville City Councilman Bill Bishop is mulling his own run for the AL-2 seat.
Were that to happen, there would be a reprise of the 2015 mayoral campaign, in which the Baker/Hughes team seemed to relish scoring shots on the Bishop campaign.
