As he nears the end of his time in office, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry is not ready to rule out another campaign — even one for governor.
But now is not the time, Curry said during an appearance Thursday on First Coast Connect.
"I don't wake up in the morning with a burning desire to be on a ballot again," Curry said. "But I'm not ruling out another run at some point."
Asked about rumors that he might run for governor, he said:
"I'm not saying that I'm even looking at running for governor. What I would say, though, is that my background and my skill set is that of an executive, both before I was in office and now having been mayor of the city of Jacksonville for eight years. And I think if you're going to run for something, truly, as a public servant, it ought to be something that you're hungry for, not something that is a placeholder. I think some people run for office as a placeholder for their next thing, and that's just not who I am."
For now, Curry said he plans to take a year off to recharge and spend time with his family.
"It's really important that I reset my life right now and find some balance personally, and with the family evaluate if another run is in me," he said. "The only way I do that is (with) fire in the belly. And the family says yes.
"I'll say this: You've got to have the fire in the belly to do something like that. I don't have it right now. With a reset, I may get it. And if I get it, and I decide to get on a ballot again, I've never lost an election."
Curry was elected as Jacksonville's 44th mayor in 2015 and served two terms. He could not run for reelection because of term limits. He previously served as chair of the Republican Party of Florida and co-founded ICX Group, a professional services firm.
Mayor-elect Donna Deegan will replace Curry on July 1.
While on the air, Curry also reflected on his two terms and took questions from callers. The interview is available online on First Coast Connect. It also will encore on the radio at 8 p.m. Thursday on WJCT News 89.9.
