Janelle Irwin Taylor
St. Petersburg City Council member Amy Foster is endorsing her colleague, Ed Montanari, for reelection, he announced Thursday.
Foster is the second sitting City Council member to endorse Montanari. Brandi Gabbard offered her endorsement earlier this month.
“Through my years of working with Ed on the City Council, I’ve come to know him as a kind and impassioned advocate for his community and our city,” Foster said. “Ed looks closely at every issue he works on and is committed to bringing our city together for the benefit of the families and businesses who call St. Petersburg home. I’m proud to endorse his reelection campaign.”
Foster was first elected to City Council in 2013 and is serving her second term. She’s served with Montanari since he was first elected in 2015.
Though the board is technically non-partisan, Montanari is the only Republican on the eight-member council. Despite some political differences and voting on opposite sides of many issues including recent historic designation debates, the two have had a cordial working relationship and Foster also supported Montanari in his 2015 campaign.
“Amy’s exceptional dedication to our city is amazing, and I have enjoyed working with her on a number of issues on the City Council. Her support means a great deal, and I’m proud to receive her official endorsement,” Montanari said.
Foster is influential outside City Hall. She currently serves as the Executive Director of the Guardian ad Litem Foundation of Tampa Bay and previously worked as the National Collaborative Network Manager for the EdLab Group’s National Girls Collaborative. Before that, she worked for nearly a decade with the Girl Scouts of West Central Florida as the Director of Girl and Adult Leadership Development.
Montanari is running as a “consensus builder” and offers a moderating voice on the otherwise liberal City Council.
So far Montanari is running without opposition. He was elected four years ago without opposition for his District 3 seat which includes Northeast St. Pete.
Montanari reportedly has already raised $40,000 for his reelection bid.
Montanari is a commercial airline pilot for American Airlines and a retired U.S. Air Force pilot.
