Poll: Deegan holds one-point lead over Davis in Jacksonville Mayoral campaign

Jacksonville, Fl — The May runoff for Jacksonville Mayor appears to be a very tight race, with Donna Deegan leading Daniel Davis by one percentage point, according to a poll from the Public Opinion Research Lab at the University of North Florida.

Registered Duval County voters who are likely to vote in the May 16 election were asked their vote choices from April 10 - 11. Deegan has 48% support and Davis has 47% support. 5% of likely voters were undecided.

The “margin of error” on this poll is +/- 3.8%.

“We’re looking at another razor-thin race that will undoubtedly come down to turnout,” said Dr. Michael Binder, PORL faculty director and UNF professor of political science.

“Both candidates will have a chance to address the issues important to voters in Thursday’s debate on UNF’s campus, and it’ll be important for each of them to energize their bases to get to the polls in May.”

CBS 47/FOX 30 Action News Jax will host a televised debate at 7:00 pm on Thursday at UNF’s Lazzara Performance Hall. Listen to 104.5 FM for live coverage of the debate.

In an open-ended question, respondents were asked what they think is the biggest problem facing Jacksonville. The most popular response, by far, was crime, with 47% of respondents indicating it is the most important problem. In a distant second place is housing costs with 8%, followed by education with 7%.

In the race for Duval County Property Appraiser, 47% supported Republican Jason Fischer and 45% for Democrat Joyce Morgan. Nine percent of respondents said they don’t know or refused to answer.

When asked about City Council At-Large Group 5, 45% of respondents said they would vote for Republican Chris Miller, while 38% indicated support for Democrat Charles Garrison, and 17% said they don’t know or refused.