Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiMay 23, 2018

Florida Politics has obtained proof that Karyn Morton, chair of the Republican Party of Duval County, attempted to sway the election for Jacksonville City Council Vice President between Danny Becton and Scott Wilson. Both Becton and Wilson, who won the race, are Republicans. However, Morton (who denied having done such when we asked her about […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 21, 2018

In a campaign capacity in Jacksonville Wednesday afternoon, Agriculture Commissioner and Republican gubernatorial hopeful Adam Putnam helmed an opioid roundtable. Putnam heard about Jacksonville’s own efforts on this front, as the city deals with an overdose crisis that has led to action on the local level. But even with that action, the problem is crippling the […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 21, 2018

Lost in all the drama and metadiscourse regarding Jacksonville’s potential sale of local utility JEA: whether the sale is good for the city or not. A meeting at 1 p.m. at Jacksonville City Hall between City Council members moved to resolve that question. Councilman Matt Schellenberg (the Council liaison to JEA, who is as open to […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 19, 2018

A representative of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department noted in a Monday meeting of a City Council panel that ‘fentanyl-laced cocaine’ is an emergent overdose trend. Jacksonville currently has a pilot program treating overdose victims. The program tests for 17 different adulterants, spanning a wide pharmacological range. Previous concerns have been fentanyl-based heroin, suggesting […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 15, 2018

Jacksonville City Councilman Bill Gulliford cut a solitary figure at the front of the Lynwood Roberts Room, as a few dozen stakeholders and interested parties convened to discuss the city’s continual struggle with affordable housing. Gulliford, not for the first time, described “neighborhoods in serious decline” locally, as spotlighted by the Block by Block study. And […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 14, 2018

Wednesday saw a Jacksonville City Council committee delve deeper into the concept of using local inmate work crews to clean up city streets. The concept is not a new one. A Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office undersheriff noted just last year that there were plenty of inmates, but a surfeit of supervisors in the budget. At the […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 24, 2018

While the Jacksonville City Council presidency next year is all but served up to the Jacksonville Chamber’s Aaron Bowman, the vice presidency is still in play. Pledge meetings kicked off, months ahead of May’s vote, for those taking office in July. All indications show the fight could prove every bit as combative as the fractious presidency […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 23, 2018

The Jacksonville City Council ‘Special Committee on Opioid Epidemic’ discussed a couple of hot-button issues Tuesday, as the city continues to grapple with the overdose crisis. “We’re at an overdose [death] a day, 400 a year,” said one committee member. One subject at hand: the city lawsuit against opioid companies, which will be handled by […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 17, 2018

The opioid crisis has hit Jacksonville hard. And now, via engagement of an international class-action law firm, the city is ready to hit back. Scott & Scott, headquartered in Connecticut, will help the city pursue tangible remedies from opioid manufacturers. This firm has scored significant eight-figure cash settlements from numerous pharmaceutical companies and is currently […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 12, 2018

“I walked through the morgue and into the cooler yesterday. That slams life and its realities home to you.” Councilman Bill Gulliford — a man who ensured, despite pushback from much of the Jacksonville City Council, that the overdose-racked Northeast Florida metropolis would attempt a pilot treatment program to deal with the wave of opioid overdose […]

Tag: Bill Gulliford

Duval GOP chair tried, failed to sabotage Council VP race

Adam Putnam: ‘Opioids are eroding our state from within’

Jacksonville City Councilor seeks $5B net for JEA electric sale; colleagues skeptical

‘Fentanyl laced cocaine’ an emergent overdose trend in Jacksonville

Jacksonville affordable housing crisis continues, outside of media spotlight

Jacksonville Council panel seeks inmates to beautify neighborhoods

Knives out early in Jacksonville City Council leadership meetings

Jacksonville opioid treatment pilot program showing encouraging results early on

Jacksonville strikes back against ‘human tragedy’, picks proven opioid suit lawyers

For Bill Gulliford, opioid crisis is a matter of life and death