LeAnna Cumber fights firefighters with firefighters in Jacksonville mayoral race

The back and forth continues between the two leading Republican fundraisers in the race for Jacksonville mayor.

City Council member LeAnna Gutierrez Cumber has a new ad trumpeting support from local fire fighters, a seeming response to Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce CEO Daniel Davis recently scoring the endorsement from the Jacksonville Brotherhood of Firefighters, a group of African-American members of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department.

“Our firefighters put their lives on the line every day to help Jax citizens when we are in need,” read an email to supporters promoting the ad. “I’m honored to have the support of so many firefighters, but don’t take my word for it… hear from our brave heroes themselves!”

The ad features a few firefighters extolling Cumber for having visited every fire station and expressing confidence that Cumber is the one mayoral candidate who knows what it takes to “move Jacksonville forward and keep our community safe.”

Cumber also appears in the 30-second spot, praising “first responders” as “our first line of defense to keep Jacksonville families safe.”

“They always have our backs,” Cumber assured.

The battle for primacy among firefighters, arguably the most important cohort of public safety support except for police officers, is still open in theory. The the Jacksonville Association of Fire Fighters did not endorse Davis ahead of the March election, a move framed as a victory by Cumber supporters. Davis was endorsed by Sheriff T.K. Waters and the Fraternal Order of Police, however, giving him an inside track on public safety support ahead of the March 21 First Election.

The Cumber ad comes days after the JBF endorsed Davis, of course, with 86% of members backing the decision.

“The Jacksonville Brotherhood of Firefighters is proud to support Daniel Davis because we have seen firsthand how he prioritizes access to opportunity for everybody in our community. It is important to us that Jacksonville’s next mayor listens to our concerns and gives us a seat at the table, and we are confident Daniel will do just that,” the JBF said in a statement.

See the new Cumber ad below.