Wes Wolfe
Republican Danny Becton gave up his District 11 post on the Jacksonville City Council to pursue the office of Duval County Property Appraiser, opening up the seat which fellow Republican Raul Arias won in the runoff, 53%-46% over Democrat Ramon Day.
A Navy veteran and small business owner, Arias campaigned on prioritizing the city’s infrastructure, encouraging job growth with policies friendly to small business and thorough support of law enforcement.
Arias promoted endorsements by JAX BIZ, the local Fraternal Order of Police, Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters, the Jacksonville fire fighters’ union, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and Jacksonville City Councilmembers Kevin Carrico, Rory Diamond, Nick Howland and Randy White.
There was a bit of a kerfuffle when a Republican Party of Florida mail piece included the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors as an endorser of Arias, when in fact the organization previously endorsed Day.
Day led Arias in the first round of voting, 43%-35%, eliminating Republican Norman Brewer, who received 22%. Brewer endorsed Day in the runoff.
Arias dramatically outraised and outspent Day going into the election, posting more than $180,000 raised and more than $166,00 spent on the effort, while Day raised more than $68,000 and went into the red, spending more than $71,000.
