Moné Holder won the Jacksonville City Council At-Large Group 1 special election Tuesday, Aug. 18, clearing the 50% threshold needed to avoid a November runoff and positioning herself to vote on the city's $2.03 billion budget in September.

Holder, a Democrat who chairs the Jacksonville Planning Commission, earned 51.27% of the vote (73,553 ballots) with all 159 precincts reporting, according to The Florida Trib. Republican Deborah Wesley received just under 45% (64,028 votes), and Libertarian Addison "Liberty" Patrick took about 4% (roughly 5,800 votes).

Mandarin-area voters cast ballots in the race, which appeared on all Duval County ballots regardless of party registration. Early voting sites included the Mandarin Branch Library and South Mandarin Branch Library.

Certification will take approximately 10 days, the Florida Times-Union reported, after which Holder will replace Terrance Freeman, who resigned to run for the Florida Legislature. That timeline puts her on the council well before the budget vote deadline of Thursday, Oct. 1.

The results are unofficial but complete. Had no candidate topped 50%, the top two finishers would have faced a runoff on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Holder's Win Gives Democrats a Vote on the City Budget

Holder becomes the only Democrat among Jacksonville's five at-large council members, shifting the body's party split to 13 Republicans and 6 Democrats. Republicans retain their supermajority.

Still, Holder gains a vote on Mayor Donna Deegan's proposed $2.03 billion budget for fiscal year 2026-27. The City Council Finance Committee already stripped all $4.9 million that Deegan proposed for an affordable housing trust fund. The full council will have the final say.

"Affordable housing is something that I really am looking forward to fighting for in the budget, particularly Mayor Deegan's affordable housing trust," Holder told the Florida Times-Union on election night, outlining her top budget priority.

Deegan said in a statement Aug. 18 that Holder would be "a voice for every person and a trusted partner on City Council."

Inside a Razor-Close Election Battle

Holder defeated Wesley by nearly 10,000 votes. She won early voting and mail-in ballots; Wesley netted only about 5,000 more Election Day votes than Holder. By the time polls closed, Democrats and Republicans were nearly matched ballot-for-ballot: 68,593 Democratic ballots to 68,513 Republican, with more than 11,000 no-party-affiliation voters also casting ballots.

Jacksonville attorney Steve Pajcic contributed $510,000 to the political committee Jacksonville Together, which supported Holder's campaign. Wesley raised roughly $200,000.

Wesley, a retired Jacksonville Sheriff's Office commander, survived three residency lawsuits challenging whether she had lived in the district for the required six months. A judge dismissed the final suit Friday, Aug. 14, after a five-hour bench trial.

Holder, also the chief advocacy and political officer for the nonprofit Florida Rising, was the first Black woman to chair the Jacksonville Planning Commission when she was appointed in 2023.

The council is scheduled to vote on the budget in September, with a final approval deadline of Oct. 1. Residents can follow the process through the City Council's public meetings.