David Arreola announces candidacy for Mayor of Gainesville

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

Gainesville City Commissioner David Arreola announced his candidacy for Mayor of Gainesville this week with a Facebook video.

In the video, Arreola says he was born and raised in Gainesville and that “we can all agree having strong neighborhoods is part of what makes Gainesville such a great place to live.” He then talks about how “our black and brown neighbors are being left out of the conversations of the contexts of their own neighborhood. This cannot be the status quo going forward for local government.”

Arreola says he was the first to propose that Gainesville go toward 100% renewable energy and that he has sometimes been “the only one to vote against new fossil fuel infrastructure.”

In a segment about Florida’s HB 1 “anti-rioting” bill and the different policies pursued by the City of Gainesville, Alachua County, and the State of Florida in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Arreola says, “I’ve had to stand up for Gainesville against the State and the federal government during the last two years of turmoil. I’m currently fighting against the attack that Ron DeSantis has against our freedom of speech, and when the pandemic hit, we had to stand up and choose people’s safety and health first, even when the State of Florida was only making the situation worse. Local government is the government closest to people, and I think we’re more than capable of governing ourselves.”

The election will be held Tuesday, August 23, 2022. The qualifying period is June 13-17, 2022.

  • Haven’t watched the video.

    Did he mention he is a far left leaning Democratic $0ci@li$t? Promotes homelessness (Voted to raise GRU rates)? Alcohol abuser (recovered?) Drug user (marijuana is still illegal)? Since he counts on his mommy to take care of him wants government to provide for you as well? Last of all, is a strong proponent to screw the citizens of Gainesville at every opportunity. Pretty sure he and his master Poe meet out of the “sunshine” on how best to screw taxpayers.

    Gainesville, let’s hope we can do better than this idiot.

    • The whole commission is already lefty Marxist
      Commie and how’s that working out? Ha, ha…
      How about some more social justice murals…that
      May do the trick.

  • Openly hates our Governor. By the way Mr Arrogant, Florida has the lowest Covid infection rate in the Country.
    We need a new commission comprised of knowledgeable business oriented leaders, not someone who demands respect because they sit on the dais.

  • Gainesville wake up and quit voting for these lefty politicians who will raise your taxes and utility rates while defunding police. These people only get elected because most people don’t vote and they will be the ones suffering the consequences of these liberals and their policies.

  • Fighting for free speech he says? We got that! Just
    Look at the panhandlers in street medians! What’s
    He talking about free speech? I guess he means more
    Liberals and no conservative speakers…oh, we can
    Govern ourselves? Great!!! No face masks & no
    Clot shots! Hoooray!!!

  • How’s GRU’s recent news they are apparently insolvent and a debt burden that is unsustainable working out for the Candidates for COG Commissioners and Mayor? What kind of business can keep their doors open spending 25% each month to cover debt. Some of them seem to still be in denial they “killed the goose that laid a golden egg” for Gainesville. Now that is gone and they have to answer to a higher authority , the State of Florida. The Biomass Eight just keeping on, keeping on.

    • Let’s borrow the lyrics from a popular song from a couple years ago…

      “If your lips are moving, then you’re lyin’, lyin’, lyin’.”

      That’s what Areola is – a lying POS.

      All you naive liberal idiots, keep believing…

      I’ve got some ocean front property for sale in Nebraska for you.

  • Hey Arreola…how about re-naming GNV to “ the big rock candy mountain”…was it General General Gaines the city was named after? Let’s get politically correct
    And rename everything like they did JJ Finley elementary…

  • Hey Arreola…get the city’s Christmas lights up!!
    Major intersections should be festive for the rest of us!

    • If they lit Christmas lights it would expose all the filth and homelessness in Gainesville… that’s the last thing they need now that potential corruption has been exposed.

      The only time Gainesville gets any “cleaning” is when an art festival or parade is happening.

      • Maybe they could give the panhandlers a Santa hat & a bell to ring to help em out…

  • We need local leaders with actual, prior work-life experiences before they go into politics. Not just well spoken high school popularity contest winners.

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