Drew Wilson
Tampa businessman Steve Cona picked up an endorsement from Tampa Bay Builders Association in his campaign for the Hillsborough School Board.
“The Tampa Bay Builders Association is happy to endorse Steve Cona for the Hillsborough County School Board, District 1,” said Jennifer Motsinger, executive vice president at TBBA. “Our organization understands that high-quality education is the key component to ensuring that students have a pathway to prosperity after graduation. We strongly believe that Steve will continuously advocate for our students in every school in the county so that they have the resources and tools to succeed.”
TBBA joins Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn in endorsing Cona, the president and CEO of the Associated Builders and Contractors Florida Gulf Coast Chapter.
“I’m very thankful for the endorsement from the TBBA,” said Cona. “It really does take a village for our students to go from dreamers to achievers, and we must all hold our school board accountable to our communities. I am proud to stand with the TBBA in support of our students and making sure that we are working our hardest in providing them a quality education from K-12 grade.”
Cona was the first candidate to enter the race to replace current School Board member Susan Valdes, who is now a candidate for House District 62. He and two other candidates, Gil Machin and William Person, have qualified for the ballot.
As of July 6, Cona had raised $47,441 for his campaign, with two thirds of that cash coming in during the first 11 days of his campaign. He leads the field with $40,718 on hand, followed by Person with $10,448 in the bank and Machin with $8,037.
The nonpartisan race will be on the Aug. 28 primary ballot and if any candidate garners more than half the vote, they will win the seat outright, otherwise the top-two vote-getters will go head-to-head in the Nov. 6 general election.
