JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Work is now beginning to transition to a new Jacksonville mayor and administration at City Hall. In an historic election, Democrat Donna Deegan will be the first female mayor of Jacksonville, leading a city of nearly a million people. It marks the end of a high-dollar, contentious election season that went into a runoff.
Deegan joined News4JAX on the Morning Show Wednesday, just 12 hours after learning she would be the River City’s next leader.
She said she plans to unite the city, and will work for everyone, including those who did not support her. She said she knows the key to victory wasn’t just getting votes from fellow democrats, but also republicans and independents. She finished with about 52% of the vote.
“That was satisfying, so gratifying to be able to do, and we knew that was the only way forward in this election, we knew that in order to win, we were going to have to unify people, that we were going to have to get support from across the political spectrum,” she said.
Deegan, a former local TV news anchor who founded the Donna Foundation after surviving breast cancer, promises her time in office will be about including everyone and being transparent.
She noted that she will have to win over many people. 48% of those who turned out did not vote for her.
“I think the same way that we created all of that support from across the spectrum, I really want everybody to understand, and I think most people know, I’m an honest broker, I really want to bring everybody into the conversation,” she said. “And I’ll be a mayor for everybody. That’s what I’ve said, from day one. I want to bring all the voices in. So, I would just say to them, please give me an opportunity.”
Tuesday night, her opponent, Republican Daniel Davis, congratulated her and complimented her in his concession speech, a big contrast to his campaigns negative ads we all saw on TV.
“I believe he loves the city just like I love the city,” she said. “We just had a different view of the campaign. And I regret some of the things that were said during the campaign. But at the end of the day, I do believe that he loves Jacksonville just like I do. And I believe we’ll work together very well, to be able to move this city forward.”
That includes working with the Republican-majority city council and Sheriff as she hopes to lower crime, increase opportunity, and build up downtown. One thing is for sure, she’ll be busy with a very difficult job.
Her vision 4 years from now?
“Well, what I hope is that we have a much more inclusive, much more transparent city government,” she said. “I’d love to see a thriving open riverfront, a healthy city and small business that is booming, like we’ve never seen it before.”
Deegan officially takes office July 1, she must pick her administration, and noted she’s already interviewing candidates to help her run the city. She also thanked her campaign team and her supporters, saying she wouldn’t be here without them.