by David Chapman
Staff Writer
After ringing in the New Year, many mayoral, City Council and constitutional officer candidates on the spring ballot will look for endorsements from area associations and unions that could go a long way toward election success.
The candidate qualifying period for the election is Jan. 10-14, which coincides with the time frame for organizations to interview candidates or begin to endorse them.
The first is out already. The Fraternal Order of Police threw its support to several candidates after interviews Nov. 30, Dec. 1 and Dec. 3.
Among their recommendations were mayoral candidate Mike Hogan and tax collector candidate Michael Corrigan, in addition to 17 council seats.
The Jacksonville Association of Fire Fighters will conduct further interviews with candidates in all races next week, according to union President Randy Wyse. Endorsement announcements for every race will be announced within the next couple of months, he said.
In the business community, the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce will endorse candidates through JaxBiz, its nonprofit, nonpartisan political affiliate.
After seeking input from chamber members, an interviewing committee consisting of chamber members and leadership will interview candidates of all the races individually and endorse those considered the most pro-business. The process will occur over the next several months, according to Mike Hightower, immediate past chair of the chamber.
“There’s going to be a lot of key questions, a lot of public policy questions and a lot of quality-of-life questions,” Hightower said in a November interview.
Both the builders and Realtors, two key industry groups, will be weighing in on the elections within the next couple of months.
The Northeast Florida Builders Association, representing the home construction industry, could release the next major list of endorsements. The association’s board of directors will vote on the recommended endorsements nominated by its political action committee during a Jan. 7 meeting installing its officers for the year.
The Northeast Florida Association of Realtors will be conducting candidate interviews during the last week of January and first week of February, according to association officials. It will endorse mayoral, council and officer candidates.
Officials at Duval Teachers United were unavailable for comment.
356-2466
The first of many
The Fraternal Order of Police was one of the first heavyweight organizations to endorse candidates in the upcoming spring elections. Here’s a look at who it endorsed. Endorsements for District 6 and At-Large Group 3 are forthcoming.
Mike Hogan, mayor
Michael Corrigan, tax collector
Lindsey Brock, City Council District 1
Stephen Heckel, City Council District 2
Mario Rubio, City Council District 3
Don Redman, City Council District 4
Lori Boyer, City Council District 5
Johnny Gaffney, City Council District 7
Denise Lee, City Council District 8
Warren Jones, City Council District 9
Reggie Brown, City Council District 10
Doug Moore, City Council District 11
Doyle Carter, City Council District 12
Bill Gulliford, City Council District 13
Jim Love, City Council District 14
Marc Hardesty, City Council At-Large Group 1
John Crescimbeni, City Council At-Large Group 2
Greg Anderson, City Council At-Large Group 4
Robin Lumb, City Council At-Large Group 5