For only the second time in the last three decades, a Democrat was elected to be Jacksonville’s mayor.
Donna Deegan, a longtime local newscaster and nonprofit leader, was elected over former state Rep. Daniel Davis, winning 52 percent in the runoff and defeating the Republican. Outgoing Mayor Lenny Curry, a Republican, was facing term limits.
Deegan’s win on Tuesday night caps off an impressive comeback following a failed congressional bid in 2020. Challenging U.S. Rep. John Rutherford, R-Fla., Deegan pulled less than 40 percent against the Republican incumbent. While she did better in Duval County than the rest of the First Coast district, even there Deegan only pulled 42.5 percent.
While Deegan beat Davis by a narrow margin–less than 10,000 votes out of more than 216,000 total ballots–she expanded her lead from the first round in March.
Deegan capped off a good night for Democrats on the First Coast. Democrat Joyce Morgan had the lead over state Rep. Jason Fischer, R-Jacksonville, in the county property appraiser’s race.
