Ken Burke backs Alen Tomczak in race for HD 66

Alen Tomczak.

Pinellas County Clerk of Court Ken Burke on Thursday endorsed Republican Alen Tomczak in the race for House District 66.

“Alen Tomczak is a Conservative fighter who knows how to get results. His type of strong leadership is exactly what we need to help protect our rights in Tallahassee. Alen grew up here in Pinellas County and will fight to protect our values in the State House,” Burke said. “I am proud to endorse a principled leader like Alen Tomczak to represent us in Tallahassee and fight for an America First Agenda.”

Burke’s endorsement follows a recent nod from retired Air Force Lt. Col. Jerry Lavely as Tomczak seeks the Republican nomination in the race to succeed Rep. Nick DiCeglie, who is running for Senate.

“Ken Burke has been a tremendous public servant and local leader ever since and even long before he entered office, and I am honored to have received his endorsement,” Alen said. “I am tremendously grateful for the outpouring of support that our campaign has generated these past few weeks, especially as I recently deployed for training at Fort Polk.”

Tomczak, a technical lead at Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base,  faces former Bay News 9 conservative commentator Berny Jacques in the GOP Primary in HD 66. No Democrat has yet filed for the race.

At the end of July, Jacques held the lead in fundraising with about $77,000 on hand between his campaign account and Florida Values Coalition political committee. Tomczak took in $3,450 for his official campaign, raising his total to $72,480 since entering the race in March. Of that, he has about $57,000 on hand.

HD 66 covers part of Clearwater and numerous other communities, including Belleair Bluffs, Indian Rocks Beach, Indian Shores and Seminole. The district has a Republican lean. Before DiCeglie’s election, the seat was held by former Republican Rep. Larry Ahern for three terms.

The district has a conservative advantage, with nearly 50,000 registered Republican voters to just over 38,000 Democrats. The district also includes nearly 34,000 independent voters.