# Harvey Ward (politician)

Harvey Ward (born 1967) is an American politician and the mayor of Gainesville, Florida. Ward has lived in Gainesville his whole life and occupied the position of city commissioner from 2017 to 2023.

## Early life and education

Ward attended Eastside High School and graduated in 1985. He then enrolled at Santa Fe College in Gainesville, and eventually graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in public relations. Ward is married to Gillian Lord, the Associate Dean of the University of Florida's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Together, they have three daughters. Ward previously served as the Executive Director of the Holy Trinity Episcopal Foundation, and in several positions at WUFT-TV/FM. Ward has served on the Gainesville City Commission since 2017.

## Electoral history

Harvey Ward was elected to district 2 of the Gainesville City Commission in 2017, narrowly avoiding a run-off. He was re-elected in 2020 with more than two-thirds of the vote. Term-limits prevented Ward from running for a third term. He ran to be mayor of Gainesville and was elected by more than 5,000 votes. Despite being elected in a nonpartisan election, Ward is a registered Democrat.
2022 Gainesville mayoral general election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | Harvey Ward | 20,415 | 57.60% |
| | Nonpartisan | Ed Bielarski | 15,026 | 42.40% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 35,441 | 100.00 |
Ward defeated Bielarski in the mayoral runoff, and will be the mayor of Gainesville from 2022 to 2025. He will go on to replace incumbent mayor Lauren Poe.
2022 Gainesville mayoral primary election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | Harvey Ward | 5,889 | 27.9 |
| | Nonpartisan | Ed Bielarski | 5,570 | 26.4 |
| | Nonpartisan | David Arreola | 3,242 | 15.4 |
| | Nonpartisan | Gary Gordon | 3,044 | 14.4 |
| | Nonpartisan | July Thomas | 2,119 | 10.1 |
| | Nonpartisan | Ansaun Fisher | 449 | 2.1 |
| | Nonpartisan | Gabriel Hillel | 273 | 1.3 |
| | Nonpartisan | Donald Shepherd | 252 | 1.2 |
| | Nonpartisan | Adam Rosenthal | 236 | 1.1 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 21,074 | 100.00 |
Ward and Bielarski advance to a runoff election, defeating 7 other candidates.
2020 Gainesville City Commission District 2 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | Harvey Ward | 4,983 | 67.89% |
| | Nonpartisan | David Walle | 2,357 | 32.11% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 7,340 | 100.00 |
Ward defeated Walle in the two-way primary race, winning reelection in district 2.
2017 Gainesville City Commission District 2 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nonpartisan | Harvey Ward | 2,261 | 50.74% |
| | Nonpartisan | Perry Clawson | 1,183 | 26.55% |
| | Nonpartisan | Sheryl Eddie | 1,012 | 22.71% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 4,456 | 100.00 |
Ward secured a narrow majority in his first city commission election, avoiding a runoff.
2014 Alachua County Commission District 2 Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Lee Pinkoson | 9,930 | 58.81% |
| | Democratic | Harvey Ward | 6,955 | 41.19% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 16,885 | 100.00 |
Ward's first election took place in 2014, where he lost to incumbent county commissioner Lee Pinkoson in the Democratic primary.