Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Ryan RayMay 12, 2015

Rep. Dwight Dudley survived a serious electoral scare in November from well-known local Republican Bill Young II, son of the late Pinellas U.S. Rep. C.W. Bill Young. The two tangled over House District 68, in the heart of St. Petersburg, one of the most competitive seats in the state at any level. Borrowing from the old […]

Bruce RitchieApril 8, 2015

A pilot program is a small step — but it is a step forward nonetheless, critics of disposable plastic shopping bags said Wednesday. A Senate committee on Wednesday approved a bill that allows coastal communities to create a 2-1/2-year pilot program to regulate or ban plastic bags. Critics say plastic bags become litter that choke […]

Mitch PerryMarch 13, 2015

Welcome to the hottest Friday the 13th in March in Tampa Bay history. If it’s Friday in Tallahassee, it’s vacation day. Although the regular session began just 10 days ago, lawmakers are apparently burned out, and require a three-day weekend. No hearings are scheduled today in the Capitol. Then again, the U.S. House of Representatives […]

Associated PressFebruary 23, 2015

Florida had one of the largest declines in homeownership in the nation during the past decade, according to new figures released Monday by the U.S. Census Bureau. The homeownership rate in Florida went from more than 73 percent at the start of 2005 to just under 65 percent at the end of last year, according […]

Mitch PerryJanuary 23, 2015

The 114th Congress elected last November includes 246 Republicans in the House of Representatives, the most since 1947. But with such a large tent, it’s evident that there will be disagreements between moderates and conservatives — and between the GOP-controlled House and Senate, and such tensions are evident just three weeks into the new session. […]

Shannon NickinsonOctober 8, 2014

I think I had my last chance to be in a wedding party. Thanks heavens I’m going out on a high note. I went through a period for a couple of years where it seemed like everyone I knew was getting matched or hatched. It was gift registries and strappy shoes for months at a […]

Janelle Irwin TaylorSeptember 1, 2014

The Tampa Bay Rays may have just finished up a really, really crappy season, but that doesn’t mean St. Pete is giving up on them.According to a new survey via St. Pete Polls commissioned by SaintPetersBlog, voters in St. Pete don’t want the Rays to leave the city. They don’t even want owners of the baseball franchise […]

Peter SchorschMarch 20, 2014

It’s been more than a week since Special Election left my life and it just hasn’t been the same since. After Republican David Jolly defeated Democrat Alex Sink in Florida’s 13th Congressional District last Tuesday, life was supposed to return to normal. The direct mail stopped arriving. The grainy, black-and-white television commercials are no longer […]

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 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: St. Petersburg
Buccaneers QB Teddy Bridgewater. Image via AP.

Dwight Dudley draws 2 early GOP opponents in swing House district

Bill doesn’t lift prohibition on plastic bag bans but allows pilot programs

Mitch Perry Report for 3.13.15 — Random thoughts

Census data: Florida homeownership dives in past decade

David Jolly admits to GOP tensions at St. Pete town hall

Shannon Nickinson: Bondi doesn’t realize the ‘majority’ accept same-sex marriage

St. Pete voters don’t want Rick Kriseman to let Rays look for stadium outside city

Peter Schorsch: Special Election was a November-to-March affair to remember

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

Ben Kirby: Election night good for Democrats across America