JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Endorsements are starting to come in for two of the four candidates who want to be the next mayor in Jacksonville.
On Wednesday, the political wing of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce endorsed Republican Lenny Curry. He has also been endorsed by the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors and the Duval County Republican Party -- even though he is not the only Republican in the race -- and a number of high-profile GOP elected officials.
Mayor Alvin Brown, a Democrat, also has a number of endorsements in his bid to win a second term -- all from labor unions, including the AFL-CIO, the North Florida Central Labor Council, the PAC for the Consolidated Local Union 177, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the United Transportation Union, the Duval Teachers' Tiger Cope Fund and others.
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News4Jax contaqcted Republican Bill Bishop and independent Omega Allen, but they did not report any civic endorsements.
Later this month the Fraternal Order of Police and Jacksonville Association of Firefighters will announce their endorsements. The fire union's endorsement is coveted because they have a political machine that can produce and put out campaign signs and canvas neighborhoods.
"We have an extremely motivated workforce," said JAF president Randy Wyse. "We have 20 to 40 guys a day here, building signs, putting them out, you know, doing work, laying signs, walking neighborhoods."
Wyse said they have already interviewed Brown and Curry, but Bishop and Allen decided not to participate. He said their endorsement does not come with strings attached, but there are some promises made.
"A promise that you will have an open door, that you will listen to our issues, and that we can educate council members or whoever that candidate is on what we do and where we need to be in the future," Wyse said. "That is the only promise made."
In the last mayor's race, the fire union backed Republican candidate Mike Hogan, who narrowly lost to Brown.
An panel of the FOP is a still interviewing candidates in advance of making its endorsement. The police union president, Steve Amos, explained what they are looking for in a mayor.
"Understand our point of view when it comes to pension and collective bargaining," Amos said. "And contracts for raises is a big issue right now, because we have not had a raise since the 2006 contract year."
Political analyst Jennifer Carroll said endorsements are especially important for first-time candidates like Curry. But they are not essential.
"You've seen candidates overcome not having the endorsements. As a matter of fact, when I ran for the statehouse in 2003, my opponent received the endorsement of police and firefighters and I won with over 80 percent of vote," Carroll said. "It all depends on the candidates, on how they are connecting with the voters."