Jill Smith responds to appeal to close election

[ufalumni]

The past few months we’ve seen our local electoral system put to the test with the legal debates surrounding the City Council seat formerly held by Jay Jabour.  Traditionally, my political involvement was as an average citizen; a businesswoman who cared for her community and left the politics to elected officials.  When the events of the Jabour election unfolded, I knew I could no longer sit on the sidelines and watch.  At the same time Dick Brown filed his suit to open the election for Jacksonville City Council At Large Group 2, my attorneys had been working to allow everyone an opportunity to run for this open seat.  This process has been difficult all parties involved and I must commend Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland, Mayor Peyton, and the City Council for their patience as the courts made their ruling. 



Last week Judge Nachman made the decision to open the race to anyone who was qualified to run, this week Bob Harms and Teresa Graham appealed that decision further delaying the process.  Drawing this legal battle out could cost the Supervisor of Elections office over 1 million dollars to hold a special election for this seat, money they can not afford to spend. 



While we may debate the actions taken by Mr. Jabour during his campaign, we must commend him for his willingness to step aside when it was in the best interest of the city.  I’m asking Bob Harms and Teresa Graham to have the same consideration for the electoral process and withdraw their appeal. The people have the ultimate right to choose who their elected representatives are and we must provide them with all available choices. If Harms and Graham are qualified to sit on the City Council, then their campaigns should be able to resonate with voters. 



The next few months will be filled with debate over who can best represent the people of Jacksonville.  We are facing many critical issues locally including rising crime, a battle over the St Johns River, and tight budget all during a slow economy.  A healthy debate of ideas is what’s best for the City of Jacksonville.  I implore Mr. Harm and Mrs. Graham to let the results of that debate be the choice of the people in the ballot box, not of a judge in a courtroom. 



Jill Smith

Candidate for Jacksonville City Council at Large Group 2

[gopman369]

Jill are you a Republican or Democrat and give us a little bit about who you are and what your platform is.

[ufalumni]

I'm not Jill, I'm just helping with her campaign. 

Jill Smith is a conservative Republican.  She works for a business consulting firm helping business owners meet environmental standards.  She was motivated to enter this race when other candidates attempted to deny the voters the right to chose who will represent them.  Although not listed in the court case, she has been involved throughout the entire process. 

She's the only viable Republican in the race that is not a career politician and she brings a fresh perspective to the issues facing Jacksonville. 

We face rising crime, a battle over the St Johns River, failing schools, and we will soon be one of the largest ports on the east coast all while trying to balance the budget with limitations placed on us from Tallahassee. Moving Jacksonville forward in these trying times requires innovative ideas, not a return to the past.

[Driven1]

so - nothing in her platform about continuous financial raping of land-owning taxpayers by our "conservative republican" mayor?  and what about her stance on alternative transportation here in Jax?

[thelakelander]

How does Jill feel about mass transit in Jacksonville and what does she plan to do about the issue?

[ufalumni]

I'll speak to Jill about the issue and get you an answer.  I know how important it is to the Metro Jacksonville community.

[thelakelander]

Thanks.

[ufalumni]

Sorry for the delay, its been a busy campaign.  I got a short answer from Jill and rather than push her for more detail, I decided to just copy the answer here so you can see her initial thoughts.  Hopefully this will be the beginning of the conversation.  Let me know if you have other questions and I'll pass them along. 


"I think public transit in Jacksonville is a hard question, because the leadership in Jacksonville is not willing to put the transportation where it is really needed. If you look at the tram system downtown, it seems to kind of miss the point. Does it really cater to the needs of the population that needs public transport? Not really.

Jacksonville has a very expansive bus system, but with petroleum scarcity, this might not work in the future.

A rail system is an idea, but the citizens have to be the driving force behind the ultimate decision. There is a "buy in" factor involved. The if you build it, they will come, theory does not apply here."

[Driven1]

and now her stance on the consistent raising of taxes here?  this is stirring a hornets nest if you are reading the daily letters to the T-U...finally it seems the citizens here are getting fed up enough to fight back a little.

[ufalumni]

Driven,  I'm going to paste Jill's answers from a recent questionnaire she filled out. 

1. Would you support a tax increase to help offset budget shortfalls or to increase the level of services available to the citizens of Jacksonville?

I would not currently support a tax increase given the economic pressure that the citizens and business community are currently facing.


2. Do you believe there are ways to trim local government spending while still providing for the needs of the citizens of Jacksonville?

Yes.  I believe that the city government can be operated more effectively. 

3.   Issue:  The political push to raise taxes
Solution:  The city council needs to provide the proper oversight of the city budget to insure that the tax revenues are being properly used.  Every dollar must be accounted for and the city must cut fiscal waste, rather than increase the tax burden of its citizens.