Staff Reports
There’s always something of a deceptive lull after a Presidential Election. Gone for a time are the relentless political ads cluttering mailboxes, social media feeds and network stations.
But the lull is not just deceptive, it’s brief. Because there’s always another election around the corner. With that comes jockeying for position, speculation, and a battle between those who have power and those who want it.
In Florida, the lull this year came to a screeching halt even before the 2025 Legislative Session began. A Special Session called by Gov. Ron DeSantis turned into a referendum on his administration — one that challenged his authority, including some veto overrides, and began what would be one of the most complicated and prolonged budget battles in recent Florida history.
Two of this Session’s budget chiefs hail from Tampa Bay, and you’re probably guessing that their names will land somewhere high on this list. Several Tampa Bay area lawmakers have taken leading roles in education and disaster preparedness, an issue of particular importance to the hurricane-battered Tampa Bay region.
And of course, there are plenty of issues at home for local officials to navigate, including the now-defunct stadium deal with the Tampa Bay Rays and the ongoing affordability crisis that City Councils and Mayors throughout the region are working tirelessly to mitigate.
There are dozens of elected officials across the region, and each has an important role to play. All are deserving of recognition, and each has their own version of local power and influence. But only 25 can make the cut of the most powerful, with a handful of honorable and notable mentions.
So, who wields the clout? And who’s bold enough to flout it? For its annual list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians, Florida Politics scoured opinions from the Sunshine Skyway to the Strawberry Festival grounds and far beyond, consulting with leaders, lobbyists and politicos, each an expert on how to wield influence.
A special thanks to RSA Consulting Group, the sponsor of this year’s rankings.
As for methodology, we define the Tampa Bay region as Pinellas, Hillsborough and Pasco, but we can also include Hernando, Polk or Sarasota if the politicians from those counties impact either Pinellas or Hillsborough.
We define a politician as being in office or running for office.
Being first on a panelist’s list earns the politician 25 points, second earns them 24 points, and so on, to where being listed 25th earns a politician one point. Points are added and, voilà, we have a list.
We also want to thank our experienced and knowledgeable panelists, who were essential to developing the 2025 list: Vinik Family Office Chief of Staff Christina Barker; communications consultant Ashley Bauman of Mercury Public Affairs; Matt Blair of Corcoran Partners; ReggieCardozo of The Public Square; StephanieCardozo of The Southern Group; Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick managing partner Ron Christaldi; former state Sen. Janet Cruz; political consultant/strategist Barry Edwards; Vicidial Group President Matt Florell; Sunrise Consulting Group President Shawn Foster; businessman Michael Griffin; Clay Hollis of Tucker/Hall; Natalie King of RSA Consulting Group; Moffitt Cancer Center VP of Public Affairs and Communications Merritt Martin; former state Rep. Seth McKeel of The Southern Group; political consultant Chris Mitchell; Mike Moore of The Southern Group; RSA President and CEO Ron Pierce; Tucker/Hall CEO Darren Richards; political consultant Jim Rimes; political consultant Preston Rudie of Catalyst Communications Group; TECO VP of State and Regional Affairs Stephanie Smith; lobbyist Alan Suskey of Shumaker Advisors; Doyle Walsh, Chief of Staff for St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch; Michelle and Peter Schorsch, publishers of Florida Politics.
No. 22 Bernie Jacques and Lindsay Cross
Notable mention: Vern Buchanan, Jim Boyd and Joe Gruters
