Jacksonville City Council Vice President Ron Salem won re-election as the At-Large Group 2 councilman, winning over Joshua Hicks, a nonprofit professional.
Salem, a Republican, was first elected four years ago, and he seems likeliest to become the City Council’s next president.
The race was the city’s fiercest partisan battle.
Hicks, who had raised about $170,000 between his candidate account and political committee as of last month, said before the election that he would have prioritized addressing “the housing crisis, infrastructure, city parks, after school programs and food deserts … to ensure every citizen gets what they need and deserve. The time of playing favorites is over.”
Salem, a pharmacist, had raised about $475,000 between his candidate account and his political committee as of last month. He has touted his work with the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department on plans to fund overdose prevention programs, including coordinating how the city would spend state funds from an opioid lawsuit,
The Jacksonville City Council comprises 14 neighborhood-based districts and five at-large council members who are voted on countywide.
Read More: Jacksonville City Council At-Large Group 2: Ron Salem, Joshua Hicks compete in close partisan race