DUVAL DEMOCRATS REACT TO RNC CONVENTION CANCELLATION 

JACKSONVILLE, FL — The Duval County Democratic Party released the following response to President Trump's cancellation of the Republican National Convention in Jacksonville.

"President Trump has finally listened to science and conventional wisdom to cancel the Republican National Convention in Jacksonville. Our local party membership came together, held a press conference, sent letters, sent emails, made social media posts, and sounded every alarm we could – all to urge our elected officials to say NO to this convention.

"However, Governor Ron DeSantis and Mayor Lenny Curry rejected our calls. It’s sad that the leaders who created this potential crisis didn’t have the leadership in our city and state to put a stop to the convention weeks ago.

"Tonight's news is a victory not just for Floridians or Democrats – but for the people of Jacksonville as a whole. We stood for our city, our families, and our children. At the end of the day that is what’s most important.

"Now is the time for leadership to come together to do what we must to make this same effort to defeat COVID-19.

"Our focus as a party returns to ensuring everyone has the opportunity to vote in the upcoming elections and turning Duval Blue this November."

DUVAL DEMS & THE NORTHSIDE COALITION
DEMAND ANSWERS ON SOE'S CLOSURE OF EARLY VOTING SITES
Questions Have Gone Unanswered for Two-Weeks

JACKSONVILLE, FL, Feb. 3, 2020 — The Duval County Democratic Executive Committee and the Northside Coalition of Jacksonville released the following statement in response to the Duval County Supervisor of Elections decision to close Early Voting sites on college campuses:

“The Duval County Democratic Executive Committee calls for transparency from the Supervisor of Elections regarding his decision to close early voting sites at the University of North Florida and Edward Waters College during the Presidential Preference Primary. Supervisor Hogan's decision deviates from the seven other counties that chosen to keep college campus early voting site open across the state: Alachua, Escambia, Hillsborough, Leon, Miami-Dade, Orange, and Palm Beach.

The Supervisor of Elections has cited past low performance as the reasoning for closing these sites. However, no additional information as been released on the multiple mitigating factors that should have been considered before the closures: Depressed turnout in underserved communities, voting access for college students, inconsistent access to voters, and on-site notification of closures.

We request that the Supervisor publicly release all pubic records and data that was used to close these early vote sites. We also ask that signage be placed at closed sites directing students and local residents to the nearest early voting location. Encouraging participation in democracy by voting is the foundation of our government. The Supervisor of Elections should work to make it easier, not harder, for citizens to vote.”

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Duval Dems Condemn Attack on Duval GOP

JACKSONVILLE, FL, FEB. 08, 2020 — The Duval County Democratic Executive Committee released the following statement in response to the February 8th incident where a van plowed through a Duval GOP voter registration tent, narrowly missing volunteers:

"The Duval County Democratic Party condemns this cowardly act of violence. No one’s life should be placed in danger for exercising their first amendment rights. As Democrats, but more importantly, as residents of this great city of Jacksonville, we call on our fellow citizens to act with dignity, civility and respect for one another during this election cycle and beyond. We look forward to JSO’s arrest of the perpetrator."

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DUVAL DEMS WELCOME THE TERMINATION OF AARON ZAHN

Mayor Curry and the JEA Board are ultimately responsible for Zahn’s actions

JACKSONVILLE, FL, Jan. 29, 2020 — The Duval County Democratic Executive Committee released the following statement in response to the JEA Board’s termination of ex-CEO Aaron Zahn and the board’s collective resignation.

"The Duval County Democratic Party welcomes the decision of the JEA Board to terminate ex-CEO Aaron Zahn with cause. This action denies him a tax-payer funded golden parachute, valued at over $800k and concludes his continued mismanagement of the utility.

“Ultimately, the JEA Board and Mayor Leonard Curry are responsible for appointing, promoting and retaining an unqualified showman to run a multi-billion dollar utility. Both the Mayor and JEA Board have a duty to ensure good governance at the utility. The Office of General Counsel reported twenty-four (24) findings of misconduct, gross negligence, and breach of fiduciary obligations by Aaron Zahn. These shocking findings justify the concerns many community leaders expressed in hiring the unqualified personal friend of the Mayor for such a position.

“The JEA Board has taken responsibility for their error in judgment and have collectively resigned their positions. Their lack of credibility leaves them unable to effectively govern the utility. It is now time for the Mayor to stand to account and take responsibility for his actions in this continuing JEA debacle. It was Mayor Curry who appointed Zahn to the JEA Board, supported his elevation to CEO, defended his lack of experience to the city council, and vouched for Zahn’s judgment to the public. Now with reports that Zahn, an independent authority CEO, frequented City Hall over 90 times in the last year, Jacksonville taxpayers deserve to know the full extent of Mayor Curry’s involvement in questionable actions taken by Mr. Zahn during his tenure.  The people deserve to know if Zahn’s corrupt actions had the Mayor’s blessing or were made at the Mayor’s direction.

“This fiasco shows the risk of having the entire JEA board appointed solely by the Mayor without additional input by City Council. That is why we support efforts to change the current method, such as the bill proposed by Councilman Garrett Dennis to require three members of the seven-person JEA board to be appointed by the City Council. This would allow more input from the City Council, and cause independent agencies to truly be independent in more than name only.

“The Duval County Democratic Party has never wavered in our opposition to the sale of JEA, which was clearly against the best interests of rate-payers and the dedicated front-line JEA workers who are ably represented by the IBEW union. We hope all decision-makers in the City will not soon forget the circumstances around this sale debacle and we can forever put to rest any notion to sell our electric and water utility.”

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Duval Dems Support the Creation of Special Investigatory Committee

Committee will investigate the failed attempted sale of JEA

"Duval Dems stand in support Council President Scott Wilson’s decision to appoint a Special Investigatory Committee to look into the failed attempted sale of JEA. Ratepayers deserve to learn the truth about JEA’s secretive sales talks, its illegal performance incentive plan, and the outside players who pushed the sale.

For two years we’ve continued to state our unequivocal opposition to a proposed sale and now it is our hope this new special committee will uncover what lies beneath this debacle. 

Our very own Councilwoman Brenda Priestly Jackson will be a member of the committee and will bring her long and consistent advocacy to protect one of our city’s greatest public assets. We look forward to an open and transparent committee process and the results of their investigation."

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"Duval Dems welcome the news that State Attorney Melissa Nelson has referred her JEA investigation to federal authorities. From the beginning, we’ve called for this action and we look forward to the results of the federal investigation into the proposed sale of JEA."

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DUVAL DEMS CALL ON STATE ATTORNEY MELISSA NELSON TO RECUSE HERSELF FROM THE JEA INVESTIGATION

 JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Duval County Democratic Party calls on State Attorney Melissa Nelson to recuse herself and requests Governor DeSantis appoint a state attorney of another judicial circuit to investigate matters regarding the sale of JEA. Recent news reports have revealed that Political Strategist Tim Baker attended and provided material support in multiple meetings involving the sale. The integrity of the ongoing investigation could be compromised if handled by Nelson's office because Baker played an integral role in her successful 2016 campaign and could consult for Nelson in her upcoming re-election bid. Earlier this year, Nelson requested that DeSantis recuse her in the Matt Shirk grand jury investigation, to avoid [in her words] the "appearance of impropriety". The public investigation of alleged corruption in the proposed sale of JEA requires no less than an equivalent ethical standard.

The pursuit of the privatization of JEA has been fraught from the beginning. City and JEA officials have not been straightforward with the citizens of Jacksonville regarding the intention to sell the utility nor the reasons for the sale. JEA officials warned the board of massive rate hikes and layoffs if the sale was not pursued, but these claims were later called into question by the Civic Council and remain unverified. There are already state ethics investigations into conflicts of interest with JEA negotiators and retention bonuses they could receive if JEA is sold. The Curry administration ignored the city’s Ethics Director who advised that sunshine laws were being violated and recommended that sales talks be canceled. 

These concerns, however, pale in comparison to the proposed Long-Term Performance Unit Plan, which led to the termination of JEA CEO Aaron Zahn, an ally of the mayor. Curry’s political consultant Tim Baker attended multiple closed-door meetings at JEA at Zahn’s request, ostensibly to offer political advice on the sales process. Multiple high-level officials at JEA have resigned or been terminated in the wake of the failed sales attempt and performance pay scheme plan. Any investigation into the sale and associated pay scheme must determine the full extent of Baker’s involvement and whether further ethical or legal violations occurred.

The entire JEA privatization process, from start to its inglorious finish, requires an objective and fair investigation. From allegations of violations of state sunshine laws to concerns of corruption in the performance pay scheme, the people of Jacksonville deserve an uncompromised accounting of what city leaders are doing with their tax dollars. The Duval County Democratic Party calls on State Attorney Melissa Nelson to recuse herself to avoid any conflict of interest in this critical investigation into the attempted sale of JEA, the associated allegations of sunshine law violations and self-dealing.

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