An “Affordability First” campaign message propelled Mone’ Holder to victory in a special election for Jacksonville City Council as Democrats flipped one of the five at-large council seats held by Republicans.
Holder will take office in time to cast votes in September on next year’s city budget replacing Terrance Freeman who is stepping down early from City Council because he ran for the state House of Representatives.
The special election would have gone to a runoff among the top two vote-getters if no one got more than 50%. Holder pulled about 51% of the vote from ballots cast citywide.
“I did a lot of talking with voters and I knew what they were looking for,” she said. “I knew they wanted change in this city and I knew they saw that in me so I felt really good going into today and I was confident and the voters prevailed.”
She said she will work to get funding for an affordable housing trust fund into the 2026-27 budget. The City Council Finance Committee stripped all of the $4.9 million that Mayor Donna Deegan’s budget proposed for the trust fund. The full City Council will get the final say.
Mone’ Holder, a Democrat, is running for an at-large Jacksonville City Council seat in the Aug. 18 special election.
“Affordable housing is something that I really am looking forward to fighting for in the budget, particularly Mayor Deegan’s affordable housing trust,” Holder said.
She said she also will focus on “making sure we’re finding ways to expand workforce development as well as making investments in infrastructure in our communities.”
When Holder takes office, she will be among six Democrats on the 19-member council. Of the five at-large City Council members elected by citywide votes, she will be the only Democrat, though Republican Matt Carlucci often allies with Deegan, who is a Democrat.
Holder also adds to the roster of council members who Deegan could ask to support any vetoes she issues, depending on what the issue is.
“I’m excited to work with Mone’ and keep Jacksonville’s momentum going,” Deegan said after the election results were tallied. “She took the time to sit down with me to talk about affordability and those kitchen table issues so important to our community and that’s the message she carried throughout her campaign. She’ll be a voice for every person and a trusted partner on City Council.”
The certification of the election results will take about 10 days and then Holder will take office replacing Freeman.
Holder won about 51% of the votes in a three-way race among her, Deborah Wesley, a Republican, and Addison “Liberty” Patrick, a Libertarian.
Holder’s campaign got a big boost from Jacksonville attorney Steve Pajcic contribution of $510,000 to Jacksonville Together, a political committee supporting her. She was able to go on television with campaign ads.
Holder is chief advocacy and political officer for Florida Rising, a nonprofit organization that describes itself as a “people-powered organization made up of members advancing economic and racial justice across Florida.”
She has been a member of the Jacksonville Planning Commission since 2023 and serves as its chair. She has served on the boards of Read USA and The ScienceSis Foundation.
Wesley emphasized public safety in her campaign. She retired from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office after moving up the ranks over a 35-year career to sergeant, lieutenant, internal affairs investigator and then commander on Sheriff T.K. Waters’ staff, where she oversaw the department of corrections.
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Waters endorsed her campaign when she entered the race in 2025.
Patrick is regional representative for a five-county area of the Libertarian Party of Florida and a former chair of the Duval County Libertarian Party.
She ran on a campaign message of “representation that doesn’t play favorites” and said she would work across party lines.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: How Democrat Mone’ Holder’s victory alters City Council dynamics