JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville City Council Al Ferraro member said Saturday he intends to run for mayor in 2023, telling supporters he will follow through on providing essential services to residents, focus on public safety and govern the same way he promises to do on the campaign trail.
“I look at our city and I don’t think crime is getting to a point that’s bad," Ferraro said. "It’s way past bad. It’s way, way past bad.”
He said he has done community walks with the Sheriff's Office, worked with neighborhood-based organizations trying to bring down violent crime, and talked to families who lost loved ones.
"It's just horrible what's happening," he said.
Ferraro, 58, has served on City Council since 2015 representing District 2 that covers a large portion of the Northside and dips across the St. Johns River into a part of East Arlington, where he lives with his wife, Amy. He owns Ferraro Lawn Service Inc., a Jacksonville business he started 35 years ago.
He said he's strived as a council member to make sure his votes on legislation are in line with what he's told his constituents.
“It bothers me when I stand side by side with people and they get in front of you and they promise you something, and as soon as they get elected, they don’t do what they say they were going to do," he said. "That bothers me immensely because you get lumped with all the bad apples."
He said nothing he does "should ever surprise the people who put me in office because I want to serve you, I want to explain everything that I do, and I want to get your opinions on everything that’s coming forward."
Ferraro made his announcement at the Jacksonville Clay Target Sports shooting range on the Northside where a couple hundred people ate barbecue for the mid-day event.
He told them he faced skepticism when he ran for City Council from people who said he couldn't win. He said he knows he won't raise the most money in the mayor's race and it will be a rough campaign.
"I wanted to be surrounded by loved ones before I got thrown into the wolves," he said.
Ferraro, a Republican, joins City Council member Matt Carlucci, also a Republican, as the announced candidates for mayor in the spring 2023 election.
Political observers expect JAX Chamber President Daniel Davis also will run for mayor based on fundraising he's done through his political committee, but he has not yet announced.
Mayor Lenny Curry cannot run again because of term limits so it is an open seat.
