A.G. Gancarski
The “will he or won’t he” suspense is over for Jacksonville mayoral race watchers, according to the Jax Daily Record.
Defeated 2011 Republican mayoral candidate Mike Hogan sent a letter to Governor Rick Scott today, declaring his intention to resign as chairman of Florida’s Public Employees Relations Commission to run for Supervisor of Elections.
The Supervisor of Elections position is wide open. Robin Lumb, the new Duval County Republican Chairman, recently declared his intention to serve as party chair for the next two years, forsaking his fundraising advantage in the SOE derby to serve as party chair.
Former Duval GOP Chair Rick Hartley, meanwhile, filed to run for SOE last week. However, Hartley was a placeholder. He told the Jax Daily Record last week that he would consider stepping aside for a potential Hogan run. And late on Friday, he did just that.
This caps off a strong week for Team Curry, which announced having raised almost $200k in December and which secured the endorsement of Sheriff John Rutherford – one of the most powerful Republicans in Northeast Florida – according to Nate Monroe of the Florida Times-Union earlier today.
“I think this city is at a cross roads right now,” Rutherford told Monroe. “We have got to have a focus back on public safety. That’s why I believe Lenny Curry is the guy that’s going to take us back on the right road.”
The Alvin Brown campaign operation will start off the new year playing catch up, as the Republican machine appears to be coalescing behind a standard bearer well in advance of the qualifying deadline for 2015 elections.
