Jacksonville City Council President Scott Wilson filed April 15 to run for Duval County Clerk of Circuit and County Courts, but he said he will remain on Council until a successor can be seated.
Wilson’s election filing was recorded by the Duval County Supervisor of Elections Office on April 16.
A Republican, he joins a field that includes Democrat Jimmy Midyette, an attorney with Midyette Law Firm, and Republican Jody Phillips, chief operating officer for the Duval County Clerk of Courts.
Incumbent Clerk Ronnie Fussell, a Republican elected in January 2013, is term-limited.
Wilson, 49, announced his run in a Facebook post April 16. He said in an April 17 interview that he’s not waiting for his current Council term to expire in 2023 to avoid running against an incumbent in 2024.
“The next time the seat is vacant would be 2028,” Wilson said. “As the year of my Council presidency has gone on, I feel like it’s given people a better sense of who Scott Wilson is.”
His term as president ends June 30.
Wilson won reelection to his District 4 Council seat March 19, 2019, with 66% of the vote over Democrat challenger Timothy Yost.
He served as Council vice president under former Council President Aaron Bowman from July 2018 through June 2019.
“I’ve thought about this office for many years,” Wilson added in a text message. “More recently as my presidency winds down, I feel like the timing is right. If not now, then when is the right time? The seat has no incumbent.”
Wilson spent nearly 13 years in the clerk’s office, starting as court record clerk in 1994. He left as the court operations in 2007 and became an executive council assistant to Republican Council member Don Redman.
Wilson said he didn’t want his announcement to distract from the city’s response to COVID-19.
“While in no way do I wish to take any attention away from the crisis that confronts our world and this community, nor the heroes who are on the frontlines fighting for us all, I believe that our democracy must move forward,” Wilson wrote in his social media post.
According to online Supervisor of Elections filings, Phillips has raised $76,279.20 since he began reporting fundraising totals in the period ending July 31, 2019. He has an additional $2,030 in-kind donations.
Midyette reported $12,329.34 in contributions for the reporting period ending March 31, with an additional $588.77 in-kind donations. The Democrat has recorded fundraising totals for one reporting period.
Wilson will have to submit his intent to resign his Council seat to qualify for the election.