Peter Schorsch
Tampa City Council member Guido Maniscalco will remain on the dais, though he’s swapping districts.
Maniscalco came out on top in Tuesday’s municipal runoff election, scoring 61.95% of the vote over challenger Robin Lockett.
That’s based on unofficial election results with all precincts in.
Maniscalco currently represents District 6, but was elected to District 2. He ran for the new district because he faced term limits in his current seat.
Maniscalco carved a clear path to first place in the General Election, securing more than 47% of the vote in the four-candidate field. But that fell short of the 50% plus one vote needed to avoid a runoff, meaning Lockett’s nearly 25% support in March was enough to buy her extra time in the race.
Maniscalco’s former colleague, Mike Suarez, finished third in last month’s election, failing to make the runoff.
Maniscalco lost his first bid for City Council in 2011 to Suarez.
But he’s officially now on a winning streak, with a third consecutive victory.
State Democrats cheered the results of the Tampa elections. Voters also elected Alan Clendenin, Lynn Hurtak and Charlie Miranda to council seats.
“Tonight, Tampa voters elected an outstanding group of Democrats who know what it means to serve the needs of their constituents. Congratulations, Councilmember-elect Clendenin, Maniscalco, Hurtak, and Miranda, on your city council election wins. The Florida Democratic Party looks forward to seeing you all work together to ensure the growth and prosperity of Tampa,” said Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried.
Money might have helped this time around. Maniscalco raised nearly $85,000 over the course of the campaign, through April 7. Lockett raised just shy of $46,000 through the same period.
Lockett is an organizer with the progressive nonprofit Florida Rising, which advocates for social justice. She was among a coalition of activists pushing the City Council last year to adopt rent stabilization, often referred to as rent control, to tamp down soaring housing costs in the city.
