Janelle Irwin Taylor
St. Pete City Council candidate Scott Orsini has been busy raising money. His opponent, John Hornbeck, has not.
According to campaign finance records filed with the city of St. Pete, Orsini has raised nearly $22,000. Hornbeck hasn’t raised a dime.
The two are running for District 1 to replace Charlie Gerdes who is leaving office due to term limits. The district covers west St. Pete.
Orsini raised $5,600 in April, the most recent filings show. That includes contributions from high-profile local Democrats including Pinellas County School Board member Linda Lerner, former City Council member Karl Nurse and Florida Rep. Ben Diamond. Orsini also collected $1,000 from the real estate development firm Blue Sky Communities.
Previous contributions from February and March include checks from Mayor Rick Kriseman’s Sunrise PAC for $1,000 and $250 from Gerdes. Both officials have already endorsed Orsini.
Of his total haul, Orsini has spent about $8,000, most of that going to the local political consulting firm Blue Ticket Consulting.
Orsini filed to run in early January. Hornbeck threw his name in the hat about two months later.
Both men are local attorneys. Orsini practices family law and Hornbeck works on health care cases. Both earned their law degrees locally from Stetson University College of Law.
Though Hornbeck hasn’t yet raised any funds, he does have a campaign website. The St. Petersburg native is running on six campaign priorities including keeping the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Pete. It’s an issue he says is important to him because he’s been a longtime fan and met his wife, Beth Hornbeck, after a game.
Hornbeck also wants to focus on economic development, affordable youth programs, support for first responders, the opioid crisis and affordable housing.
Orsini’s platform includes environmental protection and sustainability. He’s already amassed several endorsers that, in addition to Gerdes and Kriseman, includes State Rep. Jennifer Webb and Pinellas County Commissioner Pat Gerard.
One comment
Robert Schultz
May 20, 2019 at 10:56 am
All the money Scott is raising is being wasted on Blue Ticket. He’s a terrible candidate in spite of the fact that the local DEM’s are mostly supporting him. He ran a loser campaign when he ran for HD 69 and he hasn’t improved.
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