Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Peter SchorschNovember 8, 2017

Tuesday’s slate of elections in St. Petersburg certainly provided a list of winners and losers, and I’m not just talking about candidates. Here’s a list of the real winners and losers emerging from the city’s general elections. Please let me know if I missed anyone. The Biggest Winners Kevin King and Ben Kirby — Kriseman‘s top City […]

Peter SchorschFebruary 27, 2017

I really don’t know Kevin King, the Chief of Staff to Mayor Rick Kriseman. I believe — and Kevin can correct me if I am wrong — the last time he and I spoke was in early 2006. It was after my spiral from politics, when I was waiting tables at a now-defunct joint on Fourth Street. If I remember correctly, Kevin […]

Peter SchorschSeptember 18, 2016

Believe it or not, 150 million gallons of waste being dumped into Tampa Bay is not St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman’s biggest political problem. Nor is a broken and breaking water and sewer system Kriseman’s biggest headache. Instead, it’s how Kriseman communicates about these and other issues which reveal the weaknesses in his administration. The sad truth is 106 […]

Peter SchorschAugust 18, 2016

As SaintPetersBlog’s Mitch Perry first reported Wednesday afternoon, the Pinellas County Democratic Executive Committee will not accept a $531 grant it received to install native plants around its headquarters located on the outskirts of downtown St. Petersburg. The decision comes after community-wide criticism was leveled at the party for requesting taxpayer dollars to improve the grounds of a political […]

Guest AuthorNovember 24, 2015

The day typically starts with the boy, 1-and-a-half, waking up too early. He’s tired, he’s fussy, and if I don’t get Elmo and his friends on “Sesame Street” on the TV fast, things will go downhill. If we’re lucky, his 3-year-old sister, who is a late sleeper like her mother, will get up on her […]

Peter SchorschMay 14, 2015

In December, I bid on a charity auction item from Creative Loafing (benefiting The Children’s Home) to enjoy lunch with Mayor Rick Kriseman. Five months and $172.50 later, Mayor Kriseman, CL Publisher David Warner, CL News & Politics Editor Kate Bradshaw, The Children’s Home’s Irene Rickus, and I sat down Thursday for a delicious, albeit heavy, lunch at Sylvia’s […]

Guest AuthorJanuary 16, 2014

Though the firearm crime rate in America has steadily decreased since 1993, America remains awash in guns — legally purchased as well as illegally obtained. An estimated 6.6 million guns were transferred in 2012 without a federal background check. The Internet has opened up a vast marketplace of weapons — some from licensed dealers, many […]

Guest AuthorDecember 11, 2013

I made the mistake of telling Emeline, the 3-year-old, what we were getting her mother for Christmas. “Earrings. But don’t tell her. It’s a surprise,” I said, naively. “Okay, Dad. But I’m not such a good secret-keeper.” This, unfortunately, turned out to be true. An hour after dinner, she couldn’t contain herself. The beans were […]

Guest AuthorDecember 4, 2013

Thanksgiving for us was a week in Arkansas with my parents. Despite all that time and the idyllic setting of my parents’ property, it still felt like a whirlwind trip. There is always too much to do, too much to say, and never enough time for any of it. In one of the rare moments […]

Guest AuthorNovember 6, 2013

If we’re honest, political watchers like me hate a surprise. We are creatures of prognostication. What does the polling say? Which way are people leaning based on anecdotal information? What is our best guess at the outcome? For election night 2013, the answers to all of those questions broke in favor of Democrats, more or […]

Tag: Ben Kirby

Winners and losers emerging from St. Petersburg’s municipal elections

I really don’t know Kevin King

For Rick Kriseman, is his biggest problem Ben Kirby?

The unnecessary partisanship of St. Petersburg’s City Hall

Ben Kirby: Thanksgiving is a time to think of less fortunate families

Over lunch, Rick Kriseman tells me he’ll be endorsing Patrick Murphy, will seek re-election

Ben Kirby: Illegal guns are not welcome in St. Pete

Ben Kirby: For more and more Americans, it’s homeless for the holidays

Ben Kirby: Will my children have the opportunities my parents had?

Ben Kirby: Election night good for Democrats across America