Jacksonville City Council President Terrance Freeman won re-election as the At-Large Group 1 councilman, fending off a challenge from Libertarian Eric Parker.
Freeman, a Republican, was first appointed to the council by then-Gov. Rick Scott in 2018. He was initially appointed to represent a heavily Democratic district, but in 2019, Freeman switched to the countywide At-Large seat.
The Jacksonville City Council comprises 14 neighborhood-based districts and five at-large council members who are voted on countywide.
Freeman has overseen the City Council while it has faced a racial-gerrymandering lawsuit. Under his leadership, the council decided to fight the lawsuit aggressively and has lost repeatedly in federal court. The city is still appealing the court’s decision to order new districts drawn by civil-rights plaintiffs, including the Jacksonville Branch of the NAACP.
Parker, an electronics technician, was one of three Libertarians running for City Council. Parker earned the largest share of the vote for a Libertarian in the city’s history.
What else do I need to know?
The Tributary has been covering local redistricting for more than a year. Here is a sample of our past coverage:
Jacksonville’s redistricting plan risks racial gerrymandering claims, experts say
Jacksonville redistricting plan splits dozens of neighborhoods
Jacksonville’s redistricting plans ignore federal guidelines
For decades, Jacksonville City Council redistricted based off ‘misinformation’
‘They’re not compact. They’re sprawling.’: Federal judge probes Jacksonville City Council redistricting
‘Racial segregation’: Federal judge blocks Jacksonville City Council districts as racial gerrymanders
Court rejects Jacksonville council districts, orders city to use plaintiffs’ maps
INTERACTIVE: HOW JACKSONVILLE’S CITY COUNCIL DISTRICTS SORT RESIDENTS BY RACE
INTERACTIVE: HOW JACKSONVILLE’S MAP SPLITS NEIGHBORHOODS
INTERACTIVE: SEE COURT-ORDERED MAP
