Choice for State Representative District 17

The Special Primary Election for State Representative in House District 17 will likely decide the outcome of the race since the winner faces a candidate with no party affiliation and a write-in candidate whose name will not even appear on the ballot.

Historic City News editor Michael Gold recently moderated a forum at St Augustine Beach where the three candidates were asked live questions — some the same, others specifically for the particular candidate.

The Editorial Review Board, and other readers who commented, seemed to feel comfortable with Mike Davis and Cyndi Stevenson because of their familiarity with the candidates. Davis’ family has deep roots in the community, as do most of our members. Stevenson has served ten-years on the St Johns County Board of County Commissioners.

The Republican candidates:

John R. “Jack” Capra REP
193 St. Johns Forest Blvd.
Saint Johns, FL 32259 (904) 534-7893 jrcapra@hotmail.com

Michael Alan Davis REP
3940 Lewis Speedway, #2201
St. Augustine, FL 32084 (904) 824-3533 mikedavis@addavis.com

Cyndi Stevenson REP
P.O. Box 600726
St. Johns, FL 32260 (904) 315-4555 cyndistevenson1@gmail.com

Stevenson resigned her seat on the Commission to run for this seat; vacated when Ronald Renuart resigned to run for Senate District 6.

Using the logic we used in deciding our endorsement for the senate contest, we eliminated Cyndi Stevenson. Again, that is in no way a condemnation of Stevenson, we endorsed her three times for county commissioner in District 1.

Jack Capra and Mike Davis have signed on for this race without abandoning a previously elected position. We like that, however, even though we have considered that fact to eliminate three candidates in these races, in and of itself, it is not a reason to vote for a candidate.

Jack Capra has strong military and legal experience that would serve him well in Tallahassee. Perhaps, depending on how he uses the next two years, we would consider him in a different election in the future. However, we don’t have near the first-hand experience with him or his family that we would need to say that we would recommend him over Michael Davis.

You don’t need to look very far to see the traditional values held by the Davis family. Mike is the third generation to own A. D. Davis; one of the most well respected builders in northeast Florida.

Mike is not “all about me” — he is about giving back with one hand what the community has allowed him to earn with the other. He is the only candidate in this race that has faced the challenge of signing the front of a paycheck. His knowledge of business, in a field so closely linked to financial recovery for District 17 and the state, will be invaluable, in our view.

From where we stand, with hundreds of years of experience in business and government in St Augustine and St Johns County on our side, Historic City News could not be more confident in offering our recommendation to Michael Alan Davis for Florida House of Representatives, District 17.