Despite outcry, Mayor Deegan says she had legal authority to remove Confederate monument, and it wasnโt a secret
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan said it was no secret the Confederate monument in Springfield Park was going to come down. She said on Wednesday she decided the days between Christmas and New Yearโs Day was the time to make it happen and follow through on one of her campaign promises.
Fight over Florida congressional districts, Black representation not over after appeals court ruling
The 1st District Court of Appeal reversed a lower courtโs ruling that the map that rewrote U.S. Rep. Al Lawsonโs district was unconstitutional because it diminished Black votersโ ability to elect a candidate of their choice.
New legislation would punish lawmakers who vote to take down Confederate monuments
State Representative Dean Black has filed legislation that would punish lawmakers who vote to successfully take down Confederate monuments. If it is passed next year by the Florida legislature, it would have a big impact on whatโs happening in Jacksonville with Confederate monuments.
Local politicians react to new bills being passed in legislative session
Among the laws Gov. Ron DeSantis has written into law, he signed SB 300, which is the Heartbeat Protection Act, prohibiting abortions once the unborn child has a detectible heartbeat, there are other bills and laws that are getting attention.
Florida House District 15
Republican Dean Black easily won the August primary in Florida House District 15, which covers North and West Jacksonville. The district extends north of the St. Johns River and outside Interstate 295 to the Nassau County line as well as west beyond Conga Drive/Pritchard Road/Chaffee Road. It continues to stretch west, following McGirts Creek then Old Middleburg Road south to Oakleaf Village Parkway, with the district covering Duval County west to the Baker County line and south to the Clay County line.
Legislation in Florida, Georgia aims to change voting regulations
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ Bills in both Florida and Georgia that aim to make changes to voting regulations are working their way through the legislative system. You might recall in Florida on the day after the 2020 presidential election, Gov. Ron DeSantis praised how smoothly the election went in the state, saying other states could learn from Florida. But in February, Raffensperger said in a statement that 35 cases involving potential violations of election law were being sent from the State Election Board to the attorney general or local prosecutors. Florida Senate Democrats say this is purely a political move designed to keep Democrats from voting in 2022.
Decriminalizing marijuana; Duval County Republican Party chairman; Sen. Jennifer Bradley
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ This edition of โThis Week in Jacksonvilleโ features City Councilman Garrett Dennis on decriminalizing marijuana and the Lot J proposal, Duval County Republican Party Chairman Dean Black on the election results and 2022, and state Sen. Jennifer Bradley on her new role.
In Florida's Old South, a new political battleground emerges
โBlack voters in this part of the state are critical to winning statewide,โ said Adrianne Shropshire, the executive director of BlackPAC. Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly 40,000 registered voters in Duval County, and more than half of the county's Democrats are African American. That was not the case when Hillary Clinton lost in Duval County to Trump in 2016. The area has also been a proving ground for Trump's attempt to peel off some Black voters โ especially Black men โ from Democrats. In Duval County, she won by a margin of fewer than 3,000 votes.
Local Republicans urge early in-person voting
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ Republican leaders and candidates from Northeast Florida urged voters to visit early voting sites and cast their ballots as early voting began Monday. โYou want to be first in line, and you can do that now because election day actually starts today.โBlack said early voting sites are safe and hygienic. There were crowds waiting when early voting sites opened Monday across Jacksonville and across Florida. Hogan said masks are encouraged but not required at voting precincts, and heโs taken extra steps to ensure voting sites are thoroughly cleaned. The Republicans who spoke Monday encouraged in-person voting for Duval County residents on the first day of early voting but made no mention of mail-in voting.
GOP mayor, congressman attend Trump Victory meet-up
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. Fresh off his Republican primary victory, U.S. Rep. John Rutherford met with Duval County GOP Chairman Dean Black and Mayor Lenny Curry on Thursday for a MAGA Meet-Up.' President Donald Trumps campaign, Trump Victory, is holding these events featuring party leaders throughout Florida the organization hopes will organize volunteers in local communities. The event was held at the Republican Party of Duval Countys headquarters in a shopping center on St. Johns Bluff Road. The Duval GOP said the rally was timed specifically ahead of Vice Presiden Joe Bidens speech Thursday evening on the final night of the Democratic National Convention, which Black called a terribly boring infomercial.Rutherford said the Democrats are talking about what good people Biden and (vice-presidential nominee) Kamala Harris are. They may be good people, but theyre bad policy, Rutherford said.
Duval County GOP chair: Jacksonville will do whatever it has to do to make RNC work
News4Jax asked Duval County GOP Chairman Dean Black about this, and he said Jacksonville will do whatever it has to do to make the convention work. News4Jax asked Black about funds and whether other spaces in the city have been considered. There are 43 days until the RNC and 100 or so days until the election. โWeโre saying that we have to wait until we get closer, but how much closer do you want to get? Mullaney said campaigning will look different, and while itโs all about November, he said theyโll have to make some decisions for the RNC soon.
Vice president stops in Jacksonville to thank RNC host committee
Jacksonville, Fla. โ Vice President Mike Pence delivered remarks Saturday evening at an event at Epping Forest in San Jose for the Jacksonville host committee for the Republican National Convention. A spokesperson for the RNC host committee said the vice president was at the event to thank the committee for the work being done to plan the convention, especially on short notice. Duval GOP Chairman Dean Black said the vice president thanked the host committee for the hard work theyโre doing, and for what theyโre about to do. But the host committee has a handle on it and weโre going to make history right here in Jacksonville,โ Black said. RELATED: Meet the Jacksonville Host Committee for the Republican National ConventionFlorida Gov.
Duval GOP says no plan to make parts of Republican Convention virtual
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. While the Democratic National Convention is on track to be almost entirely virtual due to COVID-19, a Duval County GOP spokesperson said Thursday there are no formal plans to scale back the Republican National Convention in Jacksonville. Dean Black, with the Duval GOP, balked at the idea of having the convention online. Were looking forward to this being an impactful event for Jacksonville businesses, and really, for all of the citizens here in Jacksonville, Black said. We are planning on having a convention.Black says anyone who attends the convention at the arena will have their temperature checked. As of Thursday, face masks were said to be optional and any decision to make them a requirement will be made closer to the convention date.
Jacksonville flotilla for President Trumpโs birthday draws more than 1,000 boats
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ For the second time in a month, Jacksonvilleโs waterways were teeming with boats filled with supporters of President Donald Trump โ this time to celebrate the presidentโs birthday. The rally, dubbed โTrumpโs Birthday Boat Rally,โ began on Sunday morning. The Republican Party of Duval County tweeted photos of the event saying more than 1,000 boats joined the boat rally. The rally comes days after Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel announced that Jacksonville will host part of the Republican National Convention. โMomentous and historic things are happening in Jacksonville and this is just one way to build up to a crescendo resulting in the Republican National Convention being held in Jacksonville," Black said.
Jacksonville โfavoriteโ for Republican convention
โWe are going to keep our convention of, the business of the convention in Charlotte. Jacksonville GOP Chairman Dean Black was every optimistic the convention with thousands of delegates, media and support staff might come here. Mayor Len Curry is a former chairperson of the state Republican Party, and the area is the home base of GOP Gov. The Partyโs party could generate at least $100 million in revenues for the host city, perhaps more. The RNC said it expects about 20,000 people for the convention, and the head of Visit Jacksonville believes the city could handle the crowds.
GOP leaders condemn โun-Americanโ attack on volunteers
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ A clearly emotional chairman of the Duval County Republican Party condemned the van attack on volunteers registering voters Saturday afternoon in a Walmart Superstore parking lot. Booking photo of Gregory Timm (Jacksonville Sheriff's office)โWe donโt know if this is politically motivated,โ Gayle said Saturday afternoon. (Watch full JSO briefing)At Mondayโs news conference, Mayor Lenny Curry called the attack โattack outrageous and scary,โ but deferred specific questions about the attack to police. The local Republican Party, Democratic Party, the stateโs two U.S. Black said he would be discussing safety measures with the mayor and sheriff to see if any changes are needed to protect party volunteers.