In one of the closest races on the ballot, Jim Overton was elected Tuesday to the office of tax collector for Duval County.
Overton, a Republican, received 50.77 percent of the vote in the runoff special election, compared to Democrat Mia Jones, who received 49.23 percent of the 369,530 ballots cast.
The special election was needed because former Tax Collector Michael Corrigan resigned in June to become president and CEO of Visit Jacksonville, the convention and visitors bureau for Jacksonville and the Beaches.
In the August primary, Jones received 47 percent of the vote to 21 percent for Overton, who was one of three Republicans on the ballot.
Overton said Monday his tax collector predecessors have done a good job and “I’d like to keep the ball rolling.”
He plans to improve the customer experience at the main office Downtown at the Yates Building and at the tax collector branch offices.
“There will be incremental changes. We can be faster, easier and more efficient,” said Overton, who served on City Council from 1992 to 2003. He was Duval County Property Appraiser from 2003 to 2015, when he left office because of term limits.
Overton also said he plans to join the state tax collectors association to study how other counties provide services to the public.
The office of tax collector will be back on the ballot in the 2019 Duval County unitary first election in March, when Overton will be the incumbent seeking a full four-year term.
Qualifying for the election begins in January.