NEW YORK, USA — Jamaican American Denise Grant was elected Tuesday as the first black woman mayor of Lauderhill, the bustling Florida city nicknamed “Jamaica Hill” because it is home to a large number of her compatriots.

Two other Jamaicans, Richard Campbell and John T Hodgson, were elected to serve as city commissioners in the city government in Lauderhill, located in Broward County, in Tuesday’s election.

Mayor-elect Grant survived a bitter campaign — during which she was forced to defend allegations of misuse of an official vehicle while she served as commissioner in the final days of the campaign — to defeat Vice-Mayor Lawrence “Jabbow” Martin.

Preliminary results posted on the Broward County website show Grant polling 16,117 or 62.55 per cent of the votes cast to 9,648 or 37.45 per cent for Martin.

Campbell and Hodgson both prevailed in four-way contests in their respective triumphs. Campbell took commissioner seat number four, polling 13,020 or 52.13 per cent to defeat Mae Smith, his nearest rival who garnered 8,046 or 33.66 per cent of the votes cast.

Hodgson prevailed over three other candidates in commissioner seat one with 8,335 votes, representing 33.75 per cent of the votes against Tracey Roach with 7,953 or 32.20 per cent.

Speaking with the Jamaica Observer after her victory, Grant listed public safety, programmes for young people and seniors as well as support for small businesses among her top priorities.

“I will also seek to undertake an independent audit of the city’s affairs to understand where things stand and especially to make an informed determination on the way forward where taxes and other critical issues are concerned,” she said.

Grant has given clear indications that she would like to lower taxes. She added that with Lauderhill being seen as one of those cities with a high crime rate, she “plans to be laser focused on the public safety issue, along with providing a business-friendly atmosphere to lure business to the area”.

“I decided to seek the office of mayor as I believe I will have more leverage, more capital, and more resources than a commissioner,” Grant said in a June 2024 interview. “These are important to improve conditions and move the city of Lauderhill forward.”

The Christiana, Manchester, native seemed to imply that having two of her compatriots as commissioners should help to advance her agenda for the city.

Not a stranger to controversy, Grant also survived a 2023 investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement regarding the code of ethics for public officials as well as a complaint about her behaviour towards a commission aide, according to published reports.

Her backers noted that she had been cleared of all the allegations against her after full and detailed investigations, which spanned more than a year in some instances.

Hodgson and Campbell, in the meantime, seem aligned with Grant with some of their priorities. On his website, Hodgson, a past student of William Knibb Memorial High School in Trelawny, said, “My focus will be on youth development, public safety, business and community development as well as fiscal responsibility.”

Hodgson, who is also a former member of the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB), hosts the folksy John T On The Morning Ride show on
WAVS 1170 AM Radio in south Florida.

“To be an elected official is a feeling of trust, respect and acceptance. The campaign was long and challenging with three other candidates, two Americans and a Haitian. My objectives as commissioner are public safety, property taxes, senior residence, youth development, fiscal responsibility and accountability,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

For his part, Campbell said he “will be aiming to make Lauderhill the number one city in the United States”. He, too, listed economic development and security as two areas on which he will be heavily focused.

Jamaicans make up a large portion of the more than 73,000 population and are the largest number of blacks in Lauderhill.

In the nearby city of Tamarac, Marlon Bolton was also returned as commissioner, while Clarendon-born Mark A Douglas lost to incumbent Michael J Ryan in the election for mayor of Sunrise.

— Additional reporting by Howard Campbell