State Rep. Daniel Davis, who becomes JAX Chamber president and CEO July 1, said this morning that he will finish his term in the Legislature and not seek re-election.
Davis, a Jacksonville Republican, said he met with chamber leaders Thursday night.
“We talked through all the different options for my service to the community,” Davis said.
The decision was that he will complete his term, which ends in November 2014, and not seek re-election. He represents District 15.
The chamber announced May 17 that it hired Davis as president and CEO to succeed Wally Lee, who retired in December after 23 years in the position.
Davis is executive director of the Northeast Florida Builders Association and leaves that position June 30.
He said the association’s search committee will accept resumes for the position until July 21.
The committee will narrow the list of candidates to about a dozen and then invite a smaller group for interviews.
Davis did not have a timeframe for a replacement at the builders group.
“They want to make the right decision first, but that doesn’t mean you need to prolong it,” he said.
When the chamber announced his hiring, Davis said he will not run for mayor in 2015, ending the rumor that he might oppose Mayor Alvin Brown, a Democrat seeking a second term.
“Clearly this is a very, very important job and there is no way I would attempt to do this job looking at another job and I clearly will give 100 percent to grow jobs in Northeast Florida for the chamber,” he said.
Davis didn’t rule out a future run. He said he wasn’t running for mayor in 2015, but when asked if that meant “ever,” he responded:
“No one can say that, but I’m definitely not running this time. I am going to focus on the chamber,” he said.
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