Wesley Davis might still be this community’s most popular local politician, despite his failed bid to become our Property Appraiser last month.
He’s well-liked and amicable, always quick with a handshake and smile, and he has a knack for making everyone feel like a friend. He’s also very visible around town, often showing up for major social and charitable events.
For those reasons, among others, more than a few folks were surprised when Davis – a former School Board and County Commission chairman – lost the Aug. 30 election.
So was he.
“Yeah, I was surprised,” Davis said of his 1,500-vote loss to 36-year incumbent David Nolte. “I knew it would be a tough race because David had been in office for a long time, but I wasn’t running to lose. I had a lot of support.
“To get about half of the people to vote for you and not win …”
Clearly, Davis was disappointed by the outcome, which saw Nolte get 52 percent of the vote to his 48 percent. And he now concedes that he might’ve picked the wrong time to run against the wrong person for the right office.
But he’s not so disappointed that he won’t strongly consider seeking public office again – possibly the same office he sought this summer.
“I’m not going to rule out another run in four years,” Davis said, “but that’s assuming David doesn’t run again.”
As for pursuing a different governmental office, Davis didn’t rule out that possibility, either, although he said “it’s too soon to think about it” and that he would consider running “only if something opens up and the timing is right.”
That wasn’t the case in February 2015, when he launched his campaign to unseat Nolte.
So why did Davis run? Why did he challenge a popular incumbent, rather than wait four years for Nolte, 73, to serve out one last term?
Why was he so eager to give up his District 1 seat on the County Commission, where he could’ve remained in the public eye and, probably, coasted into the Property Appraiser’s Office in 2020?
More than one local politician, all of them speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Davis should’ve waited – that many influential Republicans in the county, especially on the barrier island, backed Nolte’s decision to seek one last term before turning over the office to the three-term county commissioner.
“Sure, I’ve heard that, and I don’t doubt that would’ve happened,” said Davis, 46. “But I don’t have any regrets, because I don’t believe these positions are meant to be lifetime jobs. There comes a time when you have to ask yourself: What are you going to get done in the next four years that you didn’t get done in the past four years?
“I think it’s good, after a while, to have fresh eyes look at things,” he added. “That’s why I chose to leave the County Commission and run for Property Appraiser.
“We gave it our all and came up a little short. It was a close race.”
Does he question his decision to run?
“Not at this point, because I really do believe it was time to move on, but ask me again in a year,” he said. “I might say it was the worst decision of my career.”
In the meantime, Davis, a fourth-generation citrus grower, said he plans to return to the private sector on a full-time basis – he has real-estate appraisal and auctioneering businesses – when his County Commission term expires in November.
He said he will miss serving on the Commission.
“What I enjoyed most about being on the County Commission was being able to solve problems and help people,” Davis said. “As a commissioner, sometimes you can get things done with a phone call and save people a lot of time. And I was looking forward to serving people as the Property Appraiser.
“But I don’t see myself as a politician, and never have,” he added. “I’ve always seen myself as a real-estate guy, auctioneer and farmer who did politics on the side. Of course, that would’ve changed if I had become the Property Appraiser.”
That’s because Property Appraiser is a full-time job. It’s also a well-paying job.
Had Davis won the election, he would have received an annual salary of $122,000, more than twice the $59,000 per year he’s paid as a county commissioner. But he said money – the pay raise also would’ve boosted his pension – wasn’t a factor in his decision to run against Nolte this year.
Davis said he took a “significant pay cut” when he was elected to the County Commission, because he put his governmental responsibilities first, which left far less time for his lucrative real-estate businesses.
“Anybody that goes into public service for the money,” Davis said, “they’re making a big mistake.”
Davis also said his motivations for seeking the Property Appraiser’s Office did not include using the position to launch a run for state or federal office.
“I didn’t run for School Board so I could be a county commissioner, and I didn’t run for Property Appraiser so I could be a state representative,” Davis said. “I ran so I could serve the community in that position, just as I did when I ran for the other positions.”
If Davis does get the itch to return to local politics, he said he would probably need to launch his campaign at least 18 months before an election.
He said he is “humbled” by the support he received throughout his recent campaign – and by the consolation showered upon him in the two weeks since the election. Nor has he “soured on public service” because of the loss, he added.
“God, no,” Davis said. “I’m going to miss it.”
Will he miss it enough to try again?
“There’s nothing out there for at least the next two years, and in some cases, we’d be looking at four or eight years out,” Davis said. “Call me in a year and we’ll see where we are.”
My guess is he’ll be every bit as popular as he is today – and that he will run again.
