JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Republican Party of Florida on Friday announced that it is filing a formal complaint with the Florida Elections Commission against Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan’s re-election campaign.
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The GOP is accusing the Deegan campaign of breaking Florida election laws in the launch of her campaign, an accusation a Deegan representative called a politically motivated “smear campaign.”
The accusation stems from a campaign video posted on Thursday, the same day she filed for re-election.
In a media release, the GOP said that hours after she filed, Deegan’s campaign released a “polished, multi-minute video featuring staged footage of Deegan — including scenes filmed in her downtown office - along with testimonials, edited news clips, and multiple filming locations across Jacksonville."
“That kind of production doesn’t happen in a few hours - and it doesn’t happen for free,” the Republican Party of Florida wrote.
The Republican Party of Florida’s complaint outlines alleged violations of Chapter 106, Florida Statutes, including accepting in-kind contributions, making expenditures, and/or authorizing campaign expenditures prior to opening a campaign account and authorizing expenditures without sufficient funds on deposit in a campaign account.
The Republican Party of Florida is requesting that the Florida Elections Commission initiate an investigation.
Political campaign adviser Ashley Walker, who works for Deegan’s campaign, said, “Everything was done by the book and is a common practice.”
“Nothing was filmed at City Hall,” Walker wrote in a statement to News4JAX. “While Mayor Deegan is delivering real results for Jacksonville families, they’re distracting from that progress with partisan stunts and political distractions. We’ve already seen these desperate, manufactured controversies and can only expect more of them as election season approaches. Mayor Deegan will keep getting things done for the people of Jacksonville. Politically motivated smear campaigns won’t stop her.”