Jacksonville Elections 2027

[marcuscnelson]

I created the previous version of this thread for the 2023 election, and it seems there's some desire to start the conversation about this next election, so let's have at it.

Just to establish the facts, incumbent Mayor Donna Deegan announced in a video this week that she would run for a second term:

That leaves the opportunity, given Jacksonville's "jungle primary" system, for whoever can garner the support of enough citizens to challenge said incumbent, or seek one of the other local offices up for grabs next year.

Duval County previously voted for President Joe Biden in 2020, the first time it did so in a presidential race since Jimmy Carter in 1976, before flipping to reelect President Donald Trump in 2024. It similarly supported Andrew Gillum's unsuccessful bid for Governor of Florida in 2018, before flipping to reelect Governor Ron DeSantis in 2022.

Who local voters will support in this year's state elections or the upcoming municipal elections is yet to be seen.

[Zac T]

And the Florida GOP is still trying to manufacture scandals. Seems time would be better spent on trying to field a real candidate

The Republican Party of Florida on Friday announced that it is filing a formal complaint with the Florida Elections Commission against Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan's re-election campaign.

...

In a media release, the GOP said that hours after she filed, Deegan's campaign released a "polished, multi-minute video featuring staged footage of Deegan — including scenes filmed in her downtown office - along with testimonials, edited news clips, and multiple filming locations across Jacksonville."

"That kind of production doesn't happen in a few hours - and it doesn't happen for free," the Republican Party of Florida wrote.

The Republican Party of Florida's complaint outlines alleged violations of Chapter 106, Florida Statutes, including accepting in-kind contributions, making expenditures, and/or authorizing campaign expenditures prior to opening a campaign account and authorizing expenditures without sufficient funds on deposit in a campaign account.

The Republican Party of Florida is requesting that the Florida Elections Commission initiate an investigation.

https://www.news4jax.com/news/politics/2026/04/17/gop-claims-mayor-broke-the-law-with-re-election-video-deegan-rep-says-everything-was-done-by-the-book/

[jaxoNOLE]

The irony is that anything of substance to complain about in Jacksonville traces back to a GOP mayor -- that's kind of the catch with being the historically dominant party in local politics. So they have to rely on cheap tricks like attempting to nationalize the race (GUN REGISTRY!!!) or manufacture scandal.

Ron Armstrong highlights some very real issues in our city, and I think that's productive. But it's inaccurate to lay those issues at the feet of the current administration, when they have been trying far harder than anyone in a long time to address maintenance deficits.

Based on her actions as our city's executive, I wouldn't have any idea what party Deegan belongs to. I think that's high praise.

[Jagsdrew]

The irony is that anything of substance to complain about in Jacksonville traces back to a GOP mayor -- that's kind of the catch with being the historically dominant party in local politics. So they have to rely on cheap tricks like attempting to nationalize the race (GUN REGISTRY!!!) or manufacture scandal.

Ron Armstrong highlights some very real issues in our city, and I think that's productive. But it's inaccurate to lay those issues at the feet of the current administration, when they have been trying far harder than anyone in a long time to address maintenance deficits.

Based on her actions as our city's executive, I wouldn't have any idea what party Deegan belongs to. I think that's high praise.

Armstrong is definitely the eager, grassroots candidate this cycle. But if any Republican council member (Salem/Diamond) or Jerry Holland run, they'll easy be the leading opposition vs Deegan going after her with the agendas around wasteful budget spending, DEI, increased taxes and so on. Basically taking the noise from social media to your TV for the next several months.

[Ken_FSU]

If I was a Republican interested in the mayor's office, I'd stay as far away from 2027 as I could. Donna Deegan is too popular, and the last mayoral race showed that not only does going dirty not work (Daniel Davis), but it actually damages your campaign. I think the city is smart enough to see through the manufactured controversies that Ron Salem and the like have tried without success to stir up since she took office.

My only advice for Deegan would be to distance herself from the U2C & Nat Ford. That whole agency is swirling the sink. Can't get sucked down with it.

[thelakelander]

Ditto on the U2C/JTA part. Nothing good will come with being associated with that albatross.

[Tacachale]

My 2 cents: the Republican party will undoubtedly trot someone out to challenge and will continue hammering on with their nonsense of the week. Whoever it ends up being will have a lot of money and a powerful machine, but unfortunately for them, their ideas are bad, their candidates are worse and people are sick of it. It'll be interested to watch the City Council races as well. Imagine what this city could do with better leadership at the helm!

[Zac T]

I am very interested in the city council races. Last UNF poll showed city council with negative favorability ratings compared to the mayor and the sheriff who both had high favorability. If the national and local political environment a year from now is similar to what it is today, there are plenty of competitive districts that could reasonably flip (including the at-large districts)

[Jones518]

I got blocked by Ron Armstrong on social media 😅..i guess i was challenging him too much 🤷💀...


 this mayoral and city council race will be interesting though..i just hope the city continues to prioritize downtown....JTA needs to drop U2C and shift focus on real mass transit for change.