JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — When state Rep. Angie Nixon opened a bookstore called Cafe Resistance, the name could apply as well to the stances she's taken in the state Legislature.
Nixon, D-Jacksonville, organized a sit-in on the House floor protesting a Congressional redistricting plan by the Republican-controlled Legislature that diminished Black voter power in north Florida, introduced a resolution calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war that was defeated 104-2 by the House, and has been one of the most vocal critics of Gov. Ron DeSantis in her appearances at rallies and news conferences.
She's facing a challenge in the Democratic Party primary contest Tuesday from former Jacksonville City Council member Brenda Priestly Jackson who says Nixon has failed at the two core tasks for a lawmaker — passing legislation and getting state appropriations for her district.
It's the most closely-watched state race in Duval County with two well-known candidates on the ballot for House District 13. Democratic voters in the district will decide Tuesday what approach they want their representative to take in Tallahassee where Republicans overwhelmingly control the Legislature, the governor's mansion and the rest of state government.
Priestly Jackson and Nixon drew a sharp line on the choice when they fielded a question about their views of DeSantis at a candidate forum sponsored by the African Methodist Episcopal Church East Conference Ministerial Alliance.
Priestly Jackson said DeSantis's "attacks and policies and practices" are "unconscionable and unfair. I don't like it. I think it further divides us. I think it sends Black folks back into chains."
She said those are "Brenda Priestly Jackson's opinions" but as a practicing attorney for almost 29 years, she understands the different roles within state government.
"And the role of the legislator is to advance legislation and get funding appropriations," she said. "So as much as I may have disdain for Gov. DeSantis's policies and many of his practices, I also understand he has the fundamental power of the pen. It's called line-item veto authority. So do I let my personal disdain for him cause the neighbors in House District 13 to suffer? You have to subvert yourself to serve."
Nixon, who has been a community organizer for more than a decade, said the stakes are too high for "go along, get along" politics. She said DeSantis bears responsibility for the Dollar General store shooting on Aug. 26, 2023, when a white Clay County gunman killed three Black people based on their race.
"You cannot play respectability politics and play nice with people who do not only not like you but don't want your communities to exist," she said. "Let's be clear. At the end of the month, we are going to have to commemorate the brutal execution of three innocent lives that were snuffed out because of the hateful rhetoric — the harmful and incendiary rhetoric — that Ron DeSantis has pushed for the past six years."
She said she speaks out to give voice to her constituents and if she hasn't been effective, "extremist Republicans" wouldn't be trying to defeat her by supporting Priestly Jackson.
"Why do Republicans in Tallahassee want to get rid of Angie Nixon?" she said. "Because she is making too much noise and organizing our community to fight back for what is ours."
