List of mayors of Jacksonville, Florida facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mayor of Jacksonville
Flag of the City of Jacksonville
Seal of the City of Jacksonville
Incumbent Donna Deegan since July 1, 2023
Style	The Honorable
Term length	4 years, renewable once consecutively
Inaugural holder	William J. Mills
Formation	1832
Salary	$206,218

The Mayor of Jacksonville is like the main boss or CEO for the city of Jacksonville, Florida. This person also manages Duval County. Jacksonville uses a "strong mayor" system. This means the mayor has a lot of power compared to the Jacksonville City Council.

Since the late 1800s, when Jacksonville and Duval County started to join together, the mayor has been in charge of the whole county. After a big change in 1968, the mayor's office officially became the main leader for the county. The current mayor is Donna Deegan. She was elected in the 2023 election.

History of Jacksonville's Mayors

The first mayor of Jacksonville was William J. Mills. He was elected way back in 1832. In 1841, a new city rulebook, called a "charter," changed the mayor's title to "Intendant." But by 1859, it was changed back to "mayor."

We don't have all the details about mayors from 1832 to 1848. Many city records were lost in the Great Fire of 1901. Most of what we know today comes from old newspapers.

There were no mayoral elections in 1840. Also, during the American Civil War, no elections were held in 1862, 1863, and 1864. After the war, during the Reconstruction era, mayoral elections started again. However, the mayor didn't have much power then. The United States Military was mostly in charge of the city. There was no set time limit for how long a mayor could serve.

On May 31, 1887, the city got a new charter. This rulebook added several nearby areas to Jacksonville. These included places like LaVilla, Springfield, and Riverside. The mayor's term was also changed from one year to two years.

The mayor at that time, John Quincy Burbridge, had just been elected. But the new charter meant a new election was needed. On December 13, 1887, Charles Bristol Smith, a Republican, won. He had support from the city's large African American community. After this, local Democrats asked the Florida State Legislature to change the city charter again. This led to changes in how mayors were chosen. From 1889 to 1893, mayors were not directly elected by the people. Instead, they were chosen by the city council. The city council members themselves were appointed by the governor of Florida.

Over the next few decades, the city's charter changed several times. More areas were added, making the city bigger. But the biggest change to local government happened on October 1, 1968. This was called the Jacksonville Consolidation. In this big step, the governments of Duval County and City of Jacksonville joined together. This made the city limits cover almost the entire county.

Mayor Hans Tanzler had just started his term on June 23, 1967. But because of the consolidation, he had to run for mayor again. He was re-elected for the new, bigger city government. He started his new term on March 1, 1968. Since then, mayors have been elected every four years. In 1991, voters decided that mayors could only serve two terms in a row.

Mayors of Consolidated Jacksonville

Here is a list of the mayors who have served Jacksonville since the big consolidation in 1968:

Images for kids

• William J. Mills (mayor).jpg

  William J. Mills, Jacksonville's first mayor

• Obediah Congar.jpg

  Obediah Congar, an early Intendant

• Joseph B. Lancaster.jpg

  Joseph B. Lancaster, an Intendant

• Oliver Wood (mayor).jpg

  Oliver Wood, an Intendant

• Rodney Dorman.jpg

  Rodney Dorman, an Intendant and later mayor

• J. McRobert Baker.jpg

  J. McRobert Baker, an Intendant

• Henry D. Holland.jpg

  Henry D. Holland, an Intendant

• Isaac Swart.jpg

  Isaac Swart, an Intendant

• F. C. Barrett.jpg

  F. C. Barrett, an Intendant

• Philip Fraser.jpg

  Philip Fraser, an Intendant

• F. I. Wheaton.jpg

  F. I. Wheaton, an Intendant

• George C. Gibbs.jpg

  George C. Gibbs, an Intendant

• John S. Murdock (mayor).jpg

  John S. Murdock, an Intendant

• Holmes Steele.jpg

  Holmes Steele, a pre-Civil War mayor

• Halstead H. Hoeg.jpg

  Halstead H. Hoeg, a pre-Civil War mayor

• John Clark (mayor).jpg

  John Clark, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Edward Hopkins (mayor).jpg

  Edward Hopkins, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Peter Jones (mayor).jpg

  Peter Jones, a pre-consolidation mayor

• J. C. Greeley.jpg

  J. C. Greeley, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Luther McConihe.jpg

  Luther McConihe, a pre-consolidation mayor

• W. Stokes Boyd.jpg

  W. Stokes Boyd, a pre-consolidation mayor

• J. Ramsey Dey.jpg

  J. Ramsey Dey, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Morris A. Dzialynski.jpg

  Morris A. Dzialynski, a pre-consolidation mayor

• William McLaw Dancy.jpg

  William McLaw Dancy, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Marshall.C. Rice.jpg

  Marshall C. Rice, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Patrick McQuaid (mayor).jpg

  Patrick McQuaid, a pre-consolidation mayor

• John Quincy Burbridge.jpg

  John Quincy Burbridge, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Charles Bristol Smith.jpg

  Charles Bristol Smith, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Henry Robinson (mayor).jpg

  Henry Robinson, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Duncan U. Fletcher.jpg

  Duncan U. Fletcher, a pre-consolidation mayor

• William M. Bostwick.jpg

  William M. Bostwick, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Raymond D. Knight.jpg

  Raymond D. Knight, a pre-consolidation mayor

• J. E. T. Bowden.jpg

  J. E. T. Bowden, a pre-consolidation mayor

• George M. Nolan.jpg

  George M. Nolan, a pre-consolidation mayor

• William H. Baker (mayor).jpg

  William H. Baker, a pre-consolidation mayor

• William H. Sebring.jpg

  William H. Sebring, a pre-consolidation mayor

• William S. Jordan.jpg

  William S. Jordan, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Van C. Swearingen.jpg

  Van C. Swearingen, a pre-consolidation mayor

• John W. Martin.jpg

  John W. Martin, a pre-consolidation mayor

• John T. Alsop, Jr..jpg

  John T. Alsop, Jr., a pre-consolidation mayor

• George C. Blume.jpg

  George C. Blume, a pre-consolidation mayor

• C. Frank Whitehead (mayor).jpg

  C. Frank Whitehead, a pre-consolidation mayor

• W. Haydon Burns.jpg

  W. Haydon Burns, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Lou Ritter.jpg

  Lou Ritter, a pre-consolidation mayor

• Hans Tanzler.jpg

  Hans Tanzler, the last pre-consolidation mayor and first consolidated city mayor

• Jake Godbold.jpg

  Jake Godbold, a consolidated city mayor

• Tommy Hazouri.jpg

  Tommy Hazouri, a consolidated city mayor

• Ed Austin.jpg

  Ed Austin, a consolidated city mayor

• John Delaney (Florida politician).jpg

  John Delaney, a consolidated city mayor

• John Peyton (US politician).jpg

  John Peyton, a consolidated city mayor

• Alvin Brown.jpg

  Alvin Brown, a consolidated city mayor

• Lenny Curry.jpg

  Lenny Curry, a consolidated city mayor

See also

• Timeline of Jacksonville, Florida