Artis Gilmore, the 77-year-old basketball Hall of Famer who became a Jacksonville icon decades ago, filed paperwork Tuesday to run for Jacksonville City Council At-Large Group 3, setting up a challenge against Republican incumbent and current Council President Nick Howland in the March 9, 2027, election. Gilmore filed as a Democrat, marking his first run for elected office after a lifetime in the Jacksonville community both on and off the court.
Gilmore filed the paperwork at the Duval County Supervisor of Elections Office, according to jaxtoday.org. He described the decision in personal terms, saying, “this is my way of getting off the bench again, getting into the game and being able to contribute to this community.” As of the filing, Gilmore and Howland were the only two candidates in the race for the countywide seat, per the same outlet.
A Platform Built Around Affordability and Blight
Gilmore says his candidacy will focus on serving people of all ages, increasing the affordable housing stock and tackling blight in neighborhoods, according to jaxtoday.org. He said every child in the city deserves the chance to finish their education, including children and adults with special needs, and that every family deserves a neighborhood with safe parks, good roads and streets free of blight. His campaign messaging, drawn from a news release, also emphasizes lowering living costs for families and seniors and improving city park and road infrastructure.
Howland, who has served on the 19-member council since 2022 and currently holds the council presidency, is seeking another four-year term, according to bradenton.com. He framed his pitch around a record of results, saying, “I'm proud to have delivered safer streets, stronger infrastructure and high-paying jobs for Jacksonville families.” Howland's Florida Freedom PAC had more than $340,000 on hand, with roughly $105,000 more in his campaign account, as reported by Florida Politics.
From Gardner-Webb to the NCAA Final
Gilmore's ties to Jacksonville date back more than half a century. He starred at then-junior college Gardner-Webb before transferring to Jacksonville University in 1969, and he led the Dolphins to the 1970 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament final, per jaxtoday.org's account. He went on to a celebrated professional career in the American Basketball Association and the NBA, winning the 1975 ABA championship with the Kentucky Colonels and earning Finals Most Valuable Player honors, according to jacksonville.com. He was also named the 1972 ABA Most Valuable Player.
Gilmore holds the NBA career record for field-goal percentage at .599, and he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011, jacksonville.com reports. The length of his pro career is described differently across sources: a Jacksonville University release puts it at a 17-season career in the ABA and NBA, while bradenton.com describes an 18-year career in pro basketball across both leagues.
A Return to Jacksonville and City Hall
Gilmore has stayed closely tied to Jacksonville since his playing days ended. He previously worked at City Hall more than a decade ago as former Mayor Alvin Brown's ambassador for sports, entertainment and physical fitness, bradenton.com notes, and bradenton.com confirms this marks his first run for elected office.
Democrats Eye a Rare Countywide Opening
The race carries added weight given the council's current makeup. Republicans hold a 13-seat majority on the Jacksonville City Council, according to jaxtoday.org, while Democrats control six of the 19 seats, according to Florida Politics. Before Mone Holder's win in August, Democrats had been shut out of countywide council seats since Tommy Hazouri died in 2021, the outlet reports. A special election earlier in 2026 saw Holder flip the Republican-held At-Large Group 1 seat, replacing Terrance Freeman.
Gilmore's bid comes alongside another Democratic push for a countywide seat: incumbent district Councilman Jimmy Peluso is seeking to flip At-Large Group 4, a seat currently held by term-limited Republican Matt Carlucci, according to the same Florida Politics report. Whether Gilmore and Howland remain the only two candidates in the Group 3 race through qualifying remains to be seen.
