Mitch Perry
Guido Maniscalco says Jackie Toledo won’t debate him before the March 24 runoff election in the Tampa City Council District 6 race.
This week Maniscalco’s campaign manger, Bryan Farris, sent a letter to Toledo’s home and emailed her campaign consultant, Anthony Pedicini, asking her to participate in a debate this Saturday. Farris says he gave Toledo until 3 p.m. Wednesday to respond, and said she had not.
“I find it distressing that my opponent does not feel that it is necessary to give the voters of District 6 the opportunity to hear from both of us, now that the race is just between us,” Maniscalco said in a prepared statement.
He went on to say, “While we both participated in several candidate forums, my opponent seldom responded directly to questions or would avoid answering questions altogether, instead merely reciting her résumé ad nausem. I want to give the voters an opportunity to hear a true debate of the issues that face District 6 and the city of Tampa as a whole. It’s a shame that my opponent does not.”
On March 4, the day after Toledo and Maniscalco qualified for a runoff, this reporter invited both candidates to participate in a radio debate on WMNF’s Midpoint program on Thursday. Maniscalco said he could participate, but Toledo said she would be out of town. An opportunity for the two to engage on the radio show March 19 was then proposed. Maniscalco agreed to the forum, but Toledo said Friday evening that she had a lunch event scheduled and was uncertain whether she could be available. She has not responded to another inquiry about her availability for that date.
