Jacksonville mayor-elect Donna Deegan on Thursday held her first news conference in City Hall to announce her six-person, bipartisan transition team.
“Our administration will be guided by the principle that every person should have a voice in City Hall and a seat at the table. Our culture will be an inclusive one where we encourage collaboration and bring in leaders from all walks of life who look like Jacksonville,” Deegan said.
The team includes former Jacksonville mayor and UNF president John Delaney, a Republican, former sheriff Nat Glover, Brightway Insurance Executive Chairman David Miller, Operation New Hope founder Kevin Gay, Florida Blue market president for the North Florida Region Darnell Smith and former sheriff candidate and retired JSO assistant chief Lakesha Burton.
“They are a brilliant group of leaders who collectively embody our guiding values, the culture we will strive to create, innovators, every one, collaborators, problem solvers. They come from across the political spectrum. They work with relentless optimism to lift our city to bring this beautiful mosaic that we call Jacksonville to its greatest good. They have deep community roots and long-established records of service,” Deegan said.
Deegan said she met with Mayor Lenny Curry on Thursday morning and thanked him publicly for helping to facilitate a smooth transition into office.
“We both have a love for Jacksonville and we want to see our city grow and succeed and I believe that’s going to happen,” Deegan said.
The exact roles of co-chairs weren’t clear Thursday, but Deegan said she would release more details in the coming weeks.