Former Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan has sent an email to his supporting dropping out of the mayor’s race.
Following is text of letter delivered to the Supervisor of Elections office:
Mr. Stafford,
It is with regret that I must inform you, friends, and political supporters of my decision to withdraw from the 2022 Mayoral Race. Family medical issues, which I had prayed would resolve by years end will not.
Those with political experience know that campaigns are high energy and intensive affairs, where candidates and their families must be solely committed to the effort. It is not fair to a candidates supporters, and the process itself, to continue knowing you cannot remain fully engaged.
We of course will be refunding all campaign contributions. Any expenditures to date will be paid by me.
Susan and I thank all of you for your encouragement and support. You will all be forever in our hearts.
Sincerely,
David Morgan
Inweekly has reached out to Morgan and is waiting on a callback.
Sorry to see that. But it’s for the right reason. He’s the kind of result oriented executive we need.
The PNJ has an online story that reports, “Morgan was one of four candidates who officially pre-filed for the seat….†In truth, Morgan was one of five candidates to include former Councilwoman Jewel Cannada-Wynn the only legitimate candidate now in the race. Two of the alleged candidates – James Hilburn and Timothy Horton – are not city residents and not eligible to run for a city elected office. A fifth candidate not mentioned by the PNJ is Andy Romagnano. He is also not a city resident but withdrew on July 21. Pensacola’s Charter requires mayoral candidates to meet three requirements “to run for the office of Mayor.†You have to meet all three requirements to file the paperwork to be a candidate. Pensacola’s City Clerk who is not a city resident or voter allows non-city residents to file paperwork with the Escambia County Supervisor of Elections Office to be a candidate for city offices, to include when non-city resident Rodney Jones supposedly “ran†in 2019 and 2020. A few weeks ago, I submitted a letter to the PNJ editor pointing out that non-city residents cannot run for city offices. If D.C. Reeves runs and wins, the Charter’s Section 4.01(a)(14) requires the Mayor, “To devote his or her entire work time to the performance of the duties of the Mayor’s office, and hold no other elected office while Mayor.†On August 19, 2009, Charter Review Commission (CRC) member Jim Reeves pushed hard for a change to the charter to clarify that the mayor cannot have outside employment. That clarification was approved by the CRC, city council and city voters.