All I know is that the last time the City of Davenport had an “election,” no one in my community appeared to have known about it. That was in 2023. As a result, the Board got to appoint its fourth commissioner in just five years.
Did you know that the majority of our Board of Commissioners got onto the Board originally by appointment, not by the votes of the people?
- Mayor Brynn Summerlin was appointed in 2018. In 2023, Summerlin was “voted” into his mayorship because no one else ran. (Did anybody know?)
- Vice Mayor Jeremy Clark was appointed in 2020. Then, due to incumbent advantage, Clark won his last election by about 100 points in 2024.
- Donna Fellows-Coffey, daughter of local political careerist and former Commissioner Tom Fellows, was appointed in 2023, while her father was still sitting on the dais.
- Bobby Lynch, was appointed in 2002 to his position and “has held the post consecutively for more than 22 years.” That’s the longest that anyone’s held onto their seat on the Board.
In short, the majority of our Board have violated the spirit of term limits for our elected officials, and Davenport voters let them do it. As it states in the city Charter, “A person may not be elected to more than two (2) consecutive three (3) year terms. At the expiration of the second term, that person shall not be eligible to serve as a Commission Member, either by appointment or by election for a period of one (1) year.” (City Charter, Article II, Section 2.01.) Too many commissioners over the history of Davenport have never adhered to the one-year Rest Rule, that they not serve for one year between terms.
Also included in Section 2.01 is an exception statement. It is what has allowed our commissioners to serve for so very long, certainly far more than agreed on by the voters of Davenport.
In slightly over two months, it will be election day for the City of Davenport. It would be nice if we actually had an election. (You know, with candidates. Plural.) If you live within the city limits, please consider running for office. The qualifying dates are from February 10 to the 14th. The democracy of our city of 20,000+ and, of course, our larger democratic Republic need you. Here is the link for more information on Davenport, Florida’s election cycle 2025.
A version of this post was printed on 2/9/25 in The Ledger.
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This is so disheartening to know that others have been denied the opportunity of serving the City of Davenport because of the “GOB” conducting business as they deem necessary.The City Manager along with the Commissioners select the same individuals to serve on the boards/committees (Canvassing Board/Charter Review) to keep the Commissioners non-diverse, mean while representing a very diverse city.What happened to democracy for all?
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