A.G. Gancarski
December fundraising for 2019 Jacksonville City Council candidates presented few surprises, continuing trends that were established in previous months.
The leading fundraiser, still: At Large District 4 Republican Matt Carlucci. Running unopposed, the former Councilman and head of the Florida Ethics Commission now has $200,000 raised — with nearly $189,000 of that on hand — after $18,374 in December.
In City Council District 5, Republican LeAnna Cumber continued to press her advantage against underfunded Democrat James Jacobs.
Cumber has raised over $145,000 after $7,400 brought in to close the year; $142,000 of that is on hand.
Jacobs has raised just $853.
A similarly lopsided money race is taking place in At Large District 2, where Ron Salem continues to dominate Bill Bishop.
$11,050 of December money brought Salem to $136,040 raised, with $133,000 of that on hand.
Bishop, meanwhile, raised just $3,500 in December. The former Councilman and Mayoral candidate has raised $17,525, with under $11,000 of that on hand.
Two other Republicans — District 13’s Rory Diamond and District 14’s Randy DeFoor — are likewise over the $100,000 threshold. Diamond raised just $1,650 in December; DeFoor raised $10,537.
Diamond thus far has no opponent, and DeFoor is basically unopposed; her only opponent, Earl Testy, has raised all of $164 since entering the race.
Other candidates have yet to raise six-figures.
In City Council District 5, Republican Rose Conry has raised over $45,000, with $3,170 of it in December. Her GOP opponent Michael Boylan — former CEO of WJCT — raised just over $10,000 in his first month of fundraising, a month in which he was still technically employed at the local public broadcasting station.
In Council District 7, incumbent Democrat Reggie Gaffney has raised $17,600 after a $2,300 March. His closest competitor, Sharise Riley, has $5,000 on hand from a personal loan.
Races in Council Districts 10 and 8 see multiple candidates, none of whom have raised over $1,450; clearly, those fields have yet to establish hierarchy.
3 comments
Bob Nonda
January 12, 2018 at 12:08 pm
At first blush it looks like there are a small collection of candidates raising lots of money and then a bunch of candidates raising no money at all.
Not too tough to figure out who will win those races. This money chase has really gotten out of hand. How do you even spend 200, 000 dollars on a council race.
I hope these candidates don’t just listen to their donors.
I hope these candidates care about the terrible traffic and our schools!
What does it cost to run for office these days!!
It seems just way too much!
Kevin Foster
January 12, 2018 at 12:11 pm
The government of Jacksonville is organized under the city charter and provides for a “strong” mayor–council system. The most notable feature of the government in Jacksonville, Florida is that it is consolidated with Duval County, an arrangement brought about in the 1968 Jacksonville Consolidation.
The Mayor of Jacksonville is elected to four-year terms and serves as the head of the government’s executive branch. The Jacksonville City Council comprises nineteen members, fourteen representing electoral districts and five more in at-large seats
Has anyone wondered why we have so many city council members? It seems like way way too many for a city of under 1 million people.
Sam Stevens
January 12, 2018 at 5:35 pm
There are some outstanding candidates and people in these races, namely LeAnna Cumber, Rory Diamond, and Randy DeFoor. They’re intelligent too. They’d be tremendous additions to the City Council. That’s probably why they’re raising so much money.
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