Harvey Ward (politician)
Harvey Ward | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Mayor of Gainesville | |
| Assumed office January 5, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Lauren Poe |
| City Commissioner from Gainesville District 2 | |
| In office 2017–2023 | |
| Preceded by | Todd Chase[1] |
| Succeeded by | Ed Book |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1966 or 1967 (age 56–57)[2] Gainesville, Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic Party |
| Spouse | Gillian Lord |
| Children | 3 |
| Residence(s) | Gainesville, Florida |
Harvey Ward (born 1966/1967) is an American politician and the mayor of Gainesville, Florida. Ward has lived in Gainesville his whole life and occupied the position of city commissioner from 2017 to 2023.[3][4][5]
Early life and education
[edit]Ward attended Eastside High School and graduated in 1985.[citation needed] He then enrolled at Santa Fe College in Gainesville, and eventually graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in public relations.[6] Ward is married to Gillian Lord, the Associate Dean of the University of Florida's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.[7][8] Together, they have three daughters. Ward previously served as the Executive Director of the Holy Trinity Episcopal Foundation, and in several positions at WUFT-TV/FM. Ward has served on the Gainesville City Commission since 2017.[6]
Electoral history
[edit]Harvey Ward was elected to district 2 of the Gainesville City Commission in 2017, narrowly avoiding a run-off. He was re-elected in 2020 with more than two-thirds of the vote. Term-limits prevented Ward from running for a third term. He ran to be mayor of Gainesville and was elected by more than 5,000 votes. Despite being elected in a nonpartisan election, Ward is a registered Democrat[9].
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Harvey Ward | 20,415 | 57.60% | |
| Nonpartisan | Ed Bielarski | 15,026 | 42.40% | |
| Total votes | 35,441 | 100.00 | ||
Ward defeated Bielarski in the mayoral runoff, and will be the mayor of Gainesville from 2022 to 2025. He will go on to replace incumbent mayor Lauren Poe.[10]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Harvey Ward | 5,889 | 27.9 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ed Bielarski | 5,570 | 26.4 | |
| Nonpartisan | David Arreola | 3,242 | 15.4 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gary Gordon | 3,044 | 14.4 | |
| Nonpartisan | July Thomas | 2,119 | 10.1 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ansaun Fisher | 449 | 2.1 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gabriel Hillel | 273 | 1.3 | |
| Nonpartisan | Donald Shepherd | 252 | 1.2 | |
| Nonpartisan | Adam Rosenthal | 236 | 1.1 | |
| Total votes | 21,074 | 100.00 | ||
Ward and Bielarski advance to a runoff election, defeating 7 other candidates.[12]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Harvey Ward | 4,983 | 67.89% | |
| Nonpartisan | David Walle | 2,357 | 32.11% | |
| Total votes | 7,340 | 100.00 | ||
Ward defeated Walle in the two-way primary race, winning reelection in district 2.[13]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Harvey Ward | 2,261 | 50.74% | |
| Nonpartisan | Perry Clawson | 1,183 | 26.55% | |
| Nonpartisan | Sheryl Eddie | 1,012 | 22.71% | |
| Total votes | 4,456 | 100.00 | ||
Ward secured a narrow majority in his first city commission election, avoiding a runoff.[14]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Lee Pinkoson | 9,930 | 58.81% | |
| Democratic | Harvey Ward | 6,955 | 41.19% | |
| Total votes | 16,885 | 100.00 | ||
Ward's first election took place in 2014, where he lost to incumbent county commissioner Lee Pinkoson in the Democratic primary.
References
[edit]- ^ https://www.votealachua.com/Portals/Alachua/Documents/Election_Results/20140311_Gainesville_Summary.pdf
- ^ https://voterrecords.com/voter/8862183/harvey-ward
- ^ Hyson, Katie. "Harvey Ward wins Gainesville's 2024 election for mayor". WUFT News. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
- ^ "Summary Results - Election Night Reporting". enr.electionsfl.org. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
- ^ "Summary Results - Election Night Reporting". enr.electionsfl.org. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
- ^ a b Ward, Harvey (February 2020). "Candidate for Election: City of Gainesville Commissioner" (PDF). Retrieved July 4, 2024.
- ^ "Gillian Lord | Department of Spanish and Portuguese Studies". people.clas.ufl.edu. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
- ^ "Harvey Ward". www.gainesvillefl.gov. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
- ^ "Harvey Lagrande Ward from Gainesville, Florida | VoterRecords.com". voterrecords.com. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
- ^ "Summary Results - Election Night Reporting". enr.electionsfl.org. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
- ^ "Summary Results - Election Night Reporting".
- ^ "Summary Results - Election Night Reporting". enr.electionsfl.org. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
- ^ https://www.votealachua.com/Portals/Alachua/Documents/Election_Results/20170314_Gainesville_Summary.pdf
- ^ https://www.votealachua.com/Portals/Alachua/Documents/Election_Results/20170314_Gainesville_Summary.pdf