CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – He said he was planning to run for re-election, but it wasn’t until Wednesday that Darryl Daniels officially filed, entering the 2020 race for Clay County sheriff.
Daniels is the sixth candidate to file, joining what was already a crowded race. The sheriff has been grappling with an ongoing FDLE investigation and the fallout from an extra-marital affair, which came to light after Daniels filed a report accusing Cierra Smith, a woman he supervised when he was chief of the jail for the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, of having a gun in her car and following him.
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Daniels apologized for the “embarrassment” caused. His wife later filed for divorce.
Daniels’ move to file comes a week after the Clay County Supervisor of Elections announced that Michelle Cook, the Atlantic Beach police chief, filed to run for sheriff. Records show as of Wednesday, she has not received any monetary contributions toward her campaign.
Mike Taylor, a former FDLE agent, has raised the most money so far of the six candidates. As of Wednesday, he had just over $78,603 in contributions. Ben Carroll, a former police chief, has raised just over $46,000 in contributions. Harold Rutledge, a former sergeant and Clay County commissioner has raised about $23,800 in contributions.
Catherine Webb, a retired Navy chief, has raised $3,150.