The government of Jacksonville is organized under the city charter and provides for a "strong" mayor–council system. The most notable feature of the government in Jacksonville, Florida, is that it is consolidated with Duval County, which the jurisdictions agreed to in the 1968 Jacksonville Consolidation.
The Mayor of Jacksonville is elected to four-year terms and serves as the head of the government's executive branch. The Jacksonville City Council comprises nineteen members, fourteen representing single-member electoral districts of roughly equal population, and five elected for at-large seats from super districts. The mayor oversees most city departments, though some are independent or quasi-independent. Law enforcement is provided by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, headed by an elected sheriff, public schools are overseen by Duval County Public Schools, and several services are provided by largely independent authorities.
Administrative structure The most noteworthy feature of Jacksonville's government is its consolidated nature. The 1968 Duval County-Jacksonville consolidation eliminated any type of separate county executive or legislature, and supplanted these positions with the Mayor of Jacksonville and the City Council of the City of Jacksonville, respectively. Because of this, voters who live outside of the city limits of Jacksonville, but inside Duval County, vote for candidates for these positions and may run for them. In 1995, John Delaney, a resident of Neptune Beach, was elected as mayor of the City of Jacksonville.
In 1968, residents of the small municipalities of Baldwin, Neptune Beach, Atlantic Beach and Jacksonville Beach voted against joining the consolidated government. The four separate communities, which comprise 6% of the total county population, provide their own municipal services, while maintaining the right to contract with the consolidated government to provide services. In December 2005, the city council of Baldwin in the far western portion of Duval County, voted to eliminate their police department. In March 2006, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office assumed policing responsibilities for the one-square-mile town.
Executive
Mayor
Jacksonville uses the Mayor-Council form of city government, also called the Strong-Mayor form, in which a mayor serves as the city's Chief Executive and Administrative officer. The mayor holds veto power over all resolutions and ordinances passed by the city council. This position also has the power to hire and fire the head of various city departments. The current mayor is Donna Deegan. She began her first term on July 1, 2023.
+ Jacksonville Constitutional Officers Office Name Party Term ends Mayor Donna Deegan Democrat 2027 Sheriff T.K. Waters Republican 2027 Property Appraiser Joyce Morgan Democrat 2027 Tax Collector Jim Overton Republican 2027 Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland Republican 2027 Clerk of the Circuit & County Courts Jody Phillips Republican 2025 State Attorney Melissa Nelson Republican 2025 Public Defender Charlie Cofer Republican 2025
Law enforcement Jacksonville and Duval County historically maintained separate police agencies: the Jacksonville Police Department and Duval County Sheriff's Office. As part of consolidation in 1968, the two merged, creating the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO). The JSO is headed by the elected Sheriff of Duval County, currently T. K. Waters, and is responsible for law enforcement and corrections in the county.
Firefighting and rescue The Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department (JFRD) is responsible for all fire protection and rescue service (ambulance) in Duval County with exceptions. Jacksonville Beach has its own department, while Atlantic Beach provides a fire station facility that is staffed and equipped by JFRD. Baldwin has a (mostly) volunteer fire department and Neptune Beach relies on Atlantic Beach for fire protection. The current JFRD Director/Fire Chief is Kurt Wilson. This position is appointed by the Mayor."JFRD Fire Chiefs" City of Jacksonville website, Fire & Rescue Department
Autonomous agencies Some government services remained - as they had been prior to consolidation – independent of both city and county authority. In accordance with Florida law, the Duval County School Board continues to exist with nearly complete autonomy. Jacksonville also has several quasi-independent government agencies which only nominally answer to the consolidated authority, including JEA, Jacksonville Port Authority, Jacksonville Transportation Authority, Jacksonville Housing Authority and Jacksonville Aviation Authority. The main environmental and agricultural body is the Duval County Soil and Water Conservation District, which works closely with other area and state agencies.
Office of General Counsel The Office of the General Counsel (OGC), currently led by Jason R. Gabriel,Galnor, Matt: "New Jacksonville general counsel shuns the spotlight but not the legal work", Florida Times-Union, August 3, 2010 includes 39 attorneys, making it one of the largest and most diverse law firms in Jacksonville. It operates like a private firm because "clients" are billed in detail for legal services provided. Clients include the public utility provider (JEA), the school district (Duval County Public Schools), Airport, Seaport, Transportation and Housing Authorities, constitutional officers (Mayor, Supervisor of Elections, Property Appraiser, Sheriff, Tax Collector and Clerk of Court), 10 departments, 19 City Council members, and 40+ boards, commissions, and agencies.
Due to this unusual client list, the General Counsel's website states that they offer support for areas that include commercial, personal injury, constitutional & civil rights litigation, real estate, land use, environmental law, labor and employment law, education law, workers' compensation, eminent domain, foreclosures, evictions, bankruptcy, torts, municipal finance, procurement, contract negotiation and drafting, as well as a variety of economic development and transactional areas.About the Office of General Counsel City of Jacksonville website, Office of General Counsel
The 1967 Charter that created Jacksonville's consolidated form of government included a provision for the Office of General Counsel. Under the Charter, the OGC represents all Jacksonville government entities. The office has developed the expertise to advise clients on municipal law and Jacksonville's Charter and consolidated form of government. The Charter also states that any legal opinion rendered by the General Counsel is binding on the entire consolidated government. Since 1968, General Counsels have issued over 370 binding legal opinions. In the early years of consolidation, legal opinions were critical to the successful establishment of Jacksonville's consolidated government and the elimination of litigation between entities.
Legislative
City Council
The city council has nineteen members, fourteen of whom are elected from single-member districts where each member must reside in the district that they represent.
The other five members are elected under a unique hybrid district/at-large system. Prior to the early 1990s, these members were elected at-large, with no specific residency requirements. However, over time the five members were all elected from the same side of the city. In order to increase representation from other areas, voters approved a change in the city charter that divided the city into five "super-districts" (unrelated to the 14 single-member districts), with one at-large member to represent each district. These five members are elected at-large from these super districts. DistrictNeighborhoods Name Party Term ends Position Ref 1Arlington and Regency Ken Amaro Republican 2027 2East Arlington (west-half), Blount Island and the northeastern outskirts Mike Gay Republican 2027 Vice Chair, Jacksonville Waterways Commission 3Girven, Golden Glades, Beach Haven, Intracoastal Waterway Will Lahnen Republican 2027 4Southside (north of 202/J. T. Butler Blvd) Kevin Carrico Republican 2027 Chair, Land Use & Zoning 5San Marco, San Jose and St. Nicolas Joe Carlucci Republican 2027 6Mandarin and Julington Creek Michael Boylan Republican 2027 Chair, Neighborhoods, Community Services, Public Health & Safety Committee 7Urban Core, Garden City, Turtle Creek and the outskirts of Northside Jimmy Peluso Democratic 2027 Chair, Jacksonville Waterways Commission 8Moncrief Park, Lake Forest, Riverview, College Park, Copper Hill and northwestern outskirts Reggie Gaffney Democratic 2027 Vice Chair, Land Use & Zoning 9Mixon Town, Murray Hill, Confederate Park, western Ortega and western Duclay Tyrona Clark-Murray Democratic 2027 10Harborview, Magnolia Gardens, Hyde Park West Jacksonville and Normandy Ju'Coby Pittman Democratic 2027 Chair, Transportation, Energy & Utilities Committee 11Southside (south of 202/J. T. Butler Blvd) Raul Arias Republican 2027 12Cecil Field, Oakleaf and the outskirts of Westside Randy White Republican 2027 Council Vice President Vice Chair, Finance Committee
Vice Chair, Rules Committee 13Mayport, Beachside Rory Diamond Republican 2027 14Argyle Forest, Duclay, Ortega, Yukon, Lakeshore, Avondale, Riverside, Fivepoints
and NAS Jacksonville Rahman Johnson Democratic 2027 At-Large Group 1 Moné Holder Democrat 2027 Group 2 Ronald Salem Republican 2027 Council President Group 3 Nick HowlandRepublican 2027 Chair, Finance Committee Group 4 Matt Carluuci Republican 2027 Group 5 Chris Miller Republican 2027
Regional representatives Federally, most of the city is split in the 4th district, represented by Republican Aaron Bean, and in the 5th district, represented by Republican John Rutherford. Jacksonville is represented in the State Senate by Clay Yarborough (R) and Tracie Davis (D) and in the State House by Wymann Duggan (R), Angela Nixon (D), Kimberly Daniels (D), Dean Black (R), Kiyan Michael (R), and Jessica Baker (R). Jacksonville, as well as the rest of the State of Florida, are served in the U.S. Senate by Rick Scott (R) and Marco Rubio (R); and by Governor Ron DeSantis (R).
Judiciary
Federal court Jacksonville is in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida. There are 15 authorized judgeships in the district who are appointed by the POTUS and confirmed by the Senate. Additionally, there are 7 judges with Senior status who are eligible to hear cases. Chief Judge of the District is Patricia C. Fawsett.
A new federal courthouse in Jacksonville was completed in late 2002 and opened in 2003 to replace the old facility, built in 1933. On February 8, 2005, the building at 300 North Hogan Street was named, the John Milton Bryan Simpson United States Courthouse.Energy Star building profiles: Jacksonville Federal CourthouseWashington Post website: Building Designations
State court Jacksonville is in the 4th Judicial Circuit of Florida, which includes Duval, Clay and Nassau counties. Circuit Courts have jurisdiction over felonies, tax issues, real property, juvenile issues, probate, family law (dissolution of marriage, paternity and adoption) and determination of competence. There are 29 elected circuit judges for Duval county: (8) Civil, (1) Probate, (7) Family, (8) Criminal and (4) Juvenile. Mark Mahon is chief judge of the circuit.City of Jacksonville website: 4th Judicial Circuit Court