As the Florida Senate considered a state rail plan yesterday, state Rep. Kevin Ambler sent out a statement from his legislative office touting his vote in favor of the proposal. He also announced that he had joined with ConnectUs, a grassroots organization pushing to win federal stimulus money for high-speed [...]
State House Rep. Rachel Burgin will have an opponent in the Republican primary in 2010. Lithia dentist Marc Johnson, 40, has filed to run for the District 56 seat.
Johnson said he decided to run because he didn't like the way the Hillsborough County Republican Party chose Burgin to run [...]
Vincent Pawlowski, a 47-year-old personal injury attorney, has filed to run for the District 5 Tampa City Council seat in 2011. Pawloski is the owner of an African-American night club in Ybor City, and the Ybor Resort and Spa, a hotel that caters to gay men.
This is Pawlowski's first attempt at winning [...]
Fundraisers for Democratic attorney general candidates Dave Aronberg and Dan Gelber have been scheduled for this month.
Aronberg's event is Monday at 5:30 p.m. at the home of Janet Rifkin. Co-hosts include some prominent Hillsborough Democrats, including Cathy Bartolotti, Alan Clendenin, Clerk of the Circuit Court Pat Frank, former mayor [...]
Ruth's List, a group with a mission to get Democratic, pro-choice women elected in Florida, has set its sights on the Tampa Bay area. Chairwoman Ellis Robinson has made 10 trips from her home in Sanibel to the Tampa area since June for fundraising events and candidate training sessions. Why [...]
South Tampa mom, travel consultant and environmental activist Julie Jenkins says she'll run for the District 4 City Council seat in March 2011. That's the seat now held by John Dingfelder, who's running for county commission. Jenkins made her first run for public office in 2007 when she made a [...]
She's not an official candidate for state attorney general, but Pam Bondi gave a sense of what she might be like on the campaign trail at a meeting of the Tampa Bay Young Republicans Tuesday night. She spoke to about 20 people -- including state house candidates Irene Guy and [...]
Tampa police chief Jane Castor will be the featured speaker at the Hillsborough County GLBTA Democratic Caucus meeting on Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. at Perkins Restaurant, 612 N. Dale Mabry Highway. When Mayor Pam Iorio tapped Castor to lead the police department in September, she became the city's first [...]
TAMPA -- Republican Congressional candidate Eddie Adams Jr. recently earned an appointment to the Hillsborough County Hospital Authority and has quickly asserted himself.
As a member of the authority, which oversees Tampa General Hospital's lease of government land on Davis Islands, he's been asking questions about the hospital's hiring of minority contractors. Leadership [...]
TAMPA -- Republican Congressional candidate Eddie Adams Jr. recently earned an appointment to the Hillsborough County Hospital Authority and has quickly asserted himself.
As a member of the authority, which oversees Tampa General Hospital's lease of government land on Davis Islands, he's been asking questions about the hospital's hiring of minority contractors. Leadership [...]
The Tampa City Council on Thursday scheduled a vote on the police union contract for Dec. 2 at 1:30 p.m. Mayor Pam Iorio and the union have been at an impasse in negotiations since July, largely over raises, so the council has to settle the dispute. But even scheduling the date [...]
By a 5-1 vote, the Tampa City Council today voted to expand its human rights ordinance to protect people from discrimination based on "gender identity and expression."
Charlie Miranda cast the lone dissenting vote after expressing concern about disruptions at work caused when someone comes to work dressed as [...]
Florida Sen. Victor Crist, chairman of the Senate Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations Committee, hosted a workshop in Tampa today to gather information on how to cut costs in the criminal justice system. The emphasis was on programs to keep people out of prison or keep them from going back. "Criminal justice [...]
With the Tampa City Council set to take a final vote tomorrow on expanding its human rights ordinance to protect "gender identity and expression," opponents of the move are sending a barrage of e-mails to council members. Council member Mary Mulhern has received more than 1,891 e-mails blasting the measure [...]
During the Hillsborough County Democratic Party meeting last night, Florida Sen. Charlie Justice outlined bills he's introducing. One would cap contributions to committees of continuing existence at $500, the same cap for donations to candidates. Another would stop corporations from giving to candidates. That would prevent one person from getting [...]
As Florida lawmakers spar about whether to hold a special session on transportation to increase the state's chances of winning stimulus funding for high-speed rail, one of the most vocal advocates of the project says they misunderstand what would really help the state's chances. Ed Turanchik, co-founder of ConnectUs, a [...]
Newcomer Stanley Gloster last week hosted his first fundraiser for the District 5 City Council seat in 2011. The seat is being vacated by Tom Scott, who is running for mayor in 2011. Many of the folks who turned out for Gloster's event said they first became familiar with him when he [...]
Glenn Beck is scheduled to be in Tampa for a book-signing from noon to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Borders Bookstore, 909 N Dale Mabry Highway. After that, he's headed to the Villages for a book-signing and rally where he reportedly is going to make "an announcement about his plans [...]
TAMPA -- Task force members considering the future of Cone Ranch oppose the outright sale of the property to private interests.
Six of the seven members of the Cone Ranch Environmental Advisory Panel have submitted their thoughts to the county in advance of what may be its final meeting Monday. Of the six, [...]
First-time Tampa City Council candidate Seth Nelson today announced two endorsements: One from Hillsborough County Commissioner Kevin Beckner and another from former City Council member Shawn Harrison. Nelson, an attorney, previously worked at Harrison's law firm. He also volunteered for Beckner's county commission run in 2008. City Council races are [...]
Marco Rubio's U.S. Senate campaign didn't take long getting back to state Sen. Mike Fasano. "Thank you for your letter regarding Governor Crist's strong support for the Obama Stimulus. Or should we say his former support for the Obama Stimulus?" the campaign wrote in a letter to Fasano distributed [...]
Last Thursday, the Tampa City Council preliminarily approved expanding the city's human rights ordinance to offer protection to transgendered people. Other than a discussion about whether the new law would protect the occasional cross dresser, the vote came with little opposition, passing by a 7-0 vote.
Every speaker at the meeting spoke [...]
Christopher Mitchell, a Democratic candidate for the District 47 state House street, is launching a petition drive this weekend to get his name on the ballot in 2010. Mitchell will face Michael Steinberg, former chair of the Hillsborough County Democratic Party in the primary.
In a news release, Mitchell said [...]
State Sen. Mike Fasano has fired off a letter to U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio over comments he recently made about him to the St. Petersburg Times.
At a Pasco County fundraiser last Saturday, the Times asked Rubio what he thought about Fasano's support of his U.S. Senate rival, Gov. [...]
Nearly 30 people turned out Tuesday night for a Hillsborough County Young Democrats meeting at Streetcar Charlie's in Ybor City. President Jennifer Fenn told the group it was the largest crowd ever, even though it was a rainy night. Guest speakers were former Congressman Jim Davis and Florida Senate candidate [...]
East Hillsborough County activist and businessman Sam Rashid has been less visible on the political front in recent years than he has in the past. But that may be changing.
Rashid sent an email to four of the county's Republican commissioners this week warning them that the board's vote last week [...]
Cory Jeffries, owner of Tampa Pro Massage, says he's likely to run for Tampa City Council in March 2011.
"I'm working on putting together my campaign strategy, my platform," he said. "I can't make a formal declaration until I get all my ducks in a row." Jeffries, 45, said he will run [...]
About 350 people turned out Friday night for the Hillsborough County Democratic Black Caucus "Living the Dream" gala, where U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek was the keynote speaker. Meek, a U.S. Senate candidate, addressed the crowd via Skype from D.C. He chose not to travel to Tampa for the event because [...]
South Hillsborough County environmental activist Mariella Smith is co-hosting a meet and greet with county commission candidate John Dingfelder on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Other hosts are Annette and Terry DeLisle and Sharon and Dean Henry. "What I like about John is that he's a politician who listens to the citizens, [...]
Some rivalries never die. Professional wrestler Jimmy Hart, who in the past has faced Brian Blair in the ring, is now backing his opponent in another contest. Hart said he's throwing his weight behind Irene Guy in the 2010 Republican primary for Florida's District [...]
While his former colleagues on the Hillsborough County Commission have struck out twice with plans to help the homeless, Brian Blair, (left) now a candidate for the District 47 state House seat, offers this plan: Put them in a vacant hotel.
“It makes sense, across [...]
Attorney Julie Brown says she's going to run for Tampa's citywide District 1 seat in 2011. That's the post Gwen Miller holds now.
In 2007, Brown ran a tough but losing race against John Dingfelder for south Tampa's District 4 seat. The contest turned into a fundraising battle that was [...]
Attorney Julie Brown says she's going to run for Tampa's citywide District 1 seat in 2011. That's the post Gwen Miller holds now.
In 2007, Brown ran a tough, but losing, race against John Dingfelder for South Tampa's District 4 seat. The contest turned into a fundraising battle that was [...]
Stacy Frank, an attorney and small business owner, today announced her candidacy for Florida's District 57 House seat. Frank,a Democrat, wants to replace Republican Faye Culp, who is term-limited out of the post. Frank is the daughter of Hillsborough clerk of the circuit court Pat Frank, a former Hillsborough County Commissioner. [...]
How important is the Hillsborough County Commission's discussion Wednesday about a referendum on rail to Mayor Pam Iorio? So important that she has cleared her calendar for the day so she can be there.
“They’re taking a very important step for this community, and they need to be able to [...]
If you don't have HBO and you're hot to see By the People, the documentary about the election of Barack Obama tomorrow, you can attend a watch party hosted by Organizing for America. There's one in Tampa at the Rock-n-Sports Bar and Grille, 1600 E Eighth Ave. in Ybor City. It starts [...]
City Council member Linda Saul-Sena wants Tampa to take a look at the digital billboard deal outgoing Mayor Rick Baker negotiated with Clear Channel. Baker has proposed an exchange rate of one digital billboard for every 10 traditional signs that come down. The plan would allow signs to switch messages every 10 seconds [...]
House District 45 candidate Kathryn Starkey announced today she has picked up the endorsement of St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker.
“I am extremely honored to have the endorsement and support of Mayor Baker. His endorsement means a lot to me and to my campaign,” Starkey said in a statement. “It is [...]
Congressman and U.S. Senate candidate Kendrick Meek is the featured speaker at the Hillsborough County Democratic Black Caucus 5th annual banquet on Friday, Nov. 6 at the Grand Hyatt in Tampa, starting at 6:30 p.m. The theme of the dinner is "Living the Dream," and promotional materials for the event [...]
It was about a year ago that former Hillsborough GOP head David Storck sent out a pre-presidential election e-mail decried as racist. When Deborah Cox-Roush was elected to take over for Storck, she pledged to reach out more to blacks, Hispanics and young people. It seems she's following through on that. [...]
Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio met yesterday with City Council members to hammer home her reasons for not conceding to demands of the unions. Among the requests she objects to: More time off for police, higher tuition reimbursements for firefighters, and a a six-month window for disciplining general employees who go astray. [...]
Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio met yesterday with City Council members to hammer home her reasons for not conceding to demands of the unions. Among the requests she objects to: More time off for police, higher tuition reimbursements for firefighters, and a a six-month window for disciplining general employees who go astray. [...]
House District 45 candidate Richard Corcoran picked up an endorsement today from the National Federation of Independent Business, one of Florida’s small-business associations.
"NFIB supports Richard Corcoran because he has the best interests of business owners in mind," NFIB/Florida Executive Director Bill Herrle said in a statement released by Corcoran’s campaign. [...]
Stanley Gloster has filed to run for the District 5 Tampa City Council seat in 2011. Gloster, 40, is a driver for FedEx who was active in the fight against a tent city for the homeless proposed by Catholic Charities in Hillsborough County. He also has recently become active in the [...]
Former state Representative Sandy Murman was at a Brandon Chamber of Commerce luncheon today on rail. The guest speakers -- Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, Hillsborough County Commissioner Mark Sharpe and Bob Clifford, executive director of TBARTA -- argued that a one-cent sales tax to support rail would also help pay [...]
He doesn't have a formidable opponent yet in his 2010 race for the Hillsborough County Commission seat being vacated by Jim Norman, but Ken Hagan, a Republican, has a formidable campaign war chest. So far he has collected more than $201,000 in monetary contributions. The total for all the other County [...]
He doesn't have a formidable opponent yet in his 2010 race for the Hillsborough County Commission seat being vacated by Jim Norman, but Ken Hagan, a Republican, has a formidable campaign war chest. So far he has collected more than $201,000 in monetary contributions. The total for all the other County [...]
At a workshop last week, city officials and organizers of Tampa's annual Gasparilla parade pledged to come down hard on underage drinkers and inappropriate, drunken behavior. But council member John Dingfelder, a candidate for the Hillsborough County Commission, wants to take it even further. He said today he wants the [...]
BayBuzz popped in on the Camp Wellstone training weekend in Tampa on Sunday, the seven-year anniversary of the death of Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone. The three-day weekend drew more than 120 candidates, campaign workers and activists, mostly from Florida, but a handful from other parts of the country. Hillsborough's Young [...]
Anyone who needs more evidence of the deep social divide between the city of Tampa and Hillsborough County need look no further than the County Commission's discussion yesterday of its sexual harassment policies. Commissioners are developing guidelines in the wake of a sexual discrimination lawsuit brought against Commissioner Kevin White by [...]
