Tampa Bay

Staff ReportsMarch 4, 2018

Charlie and Carole Crist have sold their condo in the Parkshore Plaza building in downtown St. Petersburg. The couple, who are going through a divorce, sold the condo to Susan and Daniel McGeown for $1.35 million, about $300,000 more than they paid for the property when they bought it in mid-2015. The Crist real estate […]

Drew WilsonMarch 3, 2018

Tampa Republican Sen. Dana Young got slammed by her Democratic re-election opponent in a Saturday email for not voting on an amendment that would ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Tampa attorney Bob Buesing said the move was “not surprising” given Young’s “A” rating from the National Rifle Association, but still said the lack of […]

Jim RosicaMarch 3, 2018

An embittered Sen. Tom Lee on Friday said the Legislature’s rank and file is “getting crumbs” from leadership and “they’re fed up about it.” Senate President Joe Negron later countered he’s “proud of the process,” saying “everyone is entitled to their opinion.” Lee had disagreed with a provision in the House’s big education bill (HB 7055) […]

Mitch PerryMarch 2, 2018

After the Parkland mass shooting two weeks ago, Bernie Fensterwald is more determined than ever to win in Senate District 16. As proof, the Dunedin Democrat is putting $25,000 of his own money into the campaign. “I’m 100 percent committed to this race, and I’m willing to prove it,” Fensterwald announced Friday. “The tragedy in Parkland […]

Mitch PerryMarch 2, 2018

Only 16 days ago, a mass shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School took the lives of 14 high school students and three adults. Nevertheless, some believe the gun control debate is “over.” That’s what Cafe Con Tampa head Bill Carlson was told when announcing the weekly lecture series would focus on three Hillsborough County students […]

Mitch PerryMarch 2, 2018

Updated In 2016, Luis Viera defeated Jim Davison by just 65 votes to win Tampa City Council District 7. Could there be a rematch in 2019? “I haven’t decided,” Davison said Friday morning, the day after Viera officially filed for re-election. In fall 2016, the two men engaged in an intense battle for the North […]

Mitch PerryMarch 2, 2018

John Dingfelder, who served on the Tampa City Council from 2003-2010, wants back in; he filed Friday as a candidate for the citywide District 3 race. The seat is currently held by Council Chair Yolie Capin, who is term-limited in 2019. The news is no surprise, as Dingfelder told Florida Politics last summer that he […]

Mitch PerryMarch 1, 2018

Former Florida Democratic Party president Sally Boynton Brown is in Tampa Thursday night to lead a “progressive message trailing” session. Some Hillsborough Democrats aren’t happy about Brown coming to town. The former executive director of the Idaho Democratic Party was hired in April 2017 by then-FDP chair Stephen Bittel to replace longtime President Scott Arceneaux. But Boynton Brown’s tenure […]

Mitch PerryMarch 1, 2018

With the horrific Broward County school shooting fresh on their minds, hundreds of King High School students in Tampa registered (or pre-registered) to vote Wednesday for the upcoming midterm elections. Twice a year, Hillsborough Elections Supervisor Craig Latimer takes staff members to every high school in the county to register students 18 years old or older, as […]

Mitch PerryMarch 1, 2018

Tarpon Springs Republican Gus Bilirakis is facing heat over a five-year-old vote against the Violence Against Women’s Act. Since 1994, Congress has taken every opportunity to reauthorize the Act, which provides protections for victims of domestic violence. However, in 2013, several congressional Republicans pushed back hard against reauthorization — a group that included Bilirakis. The legislation funds rape […]

Tampa Bay

Charlie Crist sells downtown St. Petersburg condo

Email Insights: Dana Young a no-show on assault weapons vote

Tom Lee ‘fed up’ with Joe Negron, top down leadership

After Parkland, Bernie Fensterwald determined to win state Senate race

Hillsborough students say they’ve only just begun to focus on gun control

Luis Viera files for re-election on Tampa City Council; Jim Davison could challenge

John Dingfelder first to file for City Council District 3 race

Sally Boynton Brown visits Tampa, miffing some Democrats

Guns on the minds of Tampa high schoolers registering to vote

Gus Bilirakis defends 2013 opposition to Violence Against Women’s Act