If you live in Tampa and haven’t thought about Tuesday’s election, you may want to, especially if you plan on sticking around for a few decades.
Sure, local elections aren’t sexy, and they get short shrift in the media (who wants to talk about stormwater when we can scream about abortion?). Sure, there’s not much excitement without a serious challenge to incumbent mayor Bob Buckhorn, whose only opponent is a write-in who has raised $120.
But, damn it, Tuesday’s election is important.
“The next four to eight years are going to chart our course in how we are going to spend our later years and how our children are going to grow up,” said political analyst Ana Cruz. “I ask this question: Is Tampa going to be a city that they can move around easily?”
But as media outlets ramp up their pre-2016 electoral coverage, local elections like Tuesday’s are largely overlooked by everyone but the most civically engaged.
Voter turnout varies, and Tampa’s 23 percent 2011 turnout was probably because of a contentious mayor’s race that brought out political heavyweights like former Tampa Mayor Dick Greco. This year, University of Tampa professor of government Scott Paine told Tampa Tribune political reporter Chris O’Donnell to expect a number “3 to 5 percent lower.”
Such low expectations are bothersome for politicos and candidates alike.
“What people don’t realize is you could get so much more done on a local level than you can on a state or a federal level,” said Joe Citro, one of three candidates running for the citywide District 2 seat Councilwoman Mary Mulhern is vacating due to term limits.
Everyone in Tampa can weigh in on three citywide seats, and many can choose their local representation as well (except for those in north and east Tampa, whose council members face no challenge). And they’ll have some pretty big decisions to make in the near future; whomever gets elected or re-elected will obviously influence the conversations at City Council meetings, as well as on various boards like those of HART and TBARTA.
“All it takes is one or two individuals on the city council to not just wreak havoc, but take the dialogue off course, take their eye off of the prize and be more of an obstructionist than [a] solution to the problem,” Cruz said.
And the council has a lot on its plate: transit, Jeff Vinik’s mega-development and, of course, the Rays.
“Right now, the city is on the cusp of taking the next step,” Citro said. “And if we get a council that is more concerned about what color a building should be as opposed to bringing in the businesses that will create careers — not jobs, careers — then we’re going to be stuck as the stopping point between Disney and the beaches of Pinellas County. This election is very, very, very, important.”
Citro faces two opponents in his race: activist Julie Jenkins and Councilman Charlie Miranda, who termed out of his West Tampa District 6 seat.
The attacks largely come from Guido Maniscalco’s campaign. Maniscalco, whose family runs a decades-old jewelry store in the district, unsuccessfully ran for City Council in 2011. He’s the only one of the three that wants another transit referendum like the one that didn’t pass in 2011.
“City Council is limited in its role for transportation,” he said. “But I can use my position of influence to educate the public, to spread the message as to why, for Tampa to be successful, not just now, but tomorrow or down the road, [we need to] improve transportation. A transportation referendum would be an investment in our future, not a tax.”
Tommy Castellano, the third contender in the race, said he wants to alleviate traffic by widening roads near new construction sites.
His focus, he said, would be to try to foster entrepreneurs locally.
“All my opponents are focusing on bringing new businesses to Tampa,” he said. “We need to focus on generating new businesses in Tampa from our own citizens. Why don’t we try to help them go into business for themselves, where they can employ people?”
To Cruz, it’s those young entrepreneurs, or anyone who hopes to be employed — and employed well — for another three or four decades who should be paying the most attention.
“People should care about every election,” she said. “That’s what gives me the most heartburn about our elections and politics, is that our young people just don’t care as much. Some young people may get mad at me about that, but the apathy and the lack of voter turnout among young voters is really heartbreaking. They have the most to lose.”
Here's a rundown of who's running and and more. Find out more at the Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections Web site.
Mayor: Bob Buckhorn (Incumbent), Jose Vazquez
District 1 (Citywide): Susan Long, Mike Suarez (Incumbent)
District 2 (Citywide): Joseph Citro, Julie Jenkins, Charlie Miranda
District 3 (Citywide): Yvonne “Yolie”Capin (Incumbent), Paul Erni
District 4 (South Tampa): Harry Cohen (Incumbent), Kent King
District 6 (West Tampa): Tommy Castellano, Guido Maniscalco, Jackie Toledo
Uncontested races: Distric 5 (East Tampa, Incumbent Frank Reddick); District 7 (North Tampa, Incumbent Lisa Montelione)
And just so ya know:
-Early voting is underway now through Monday from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
-Where to early vote: C. Blythe Andrews Jr. Public Library (2607 E Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.), Fred B. Karl County
Center (601 E Kennedy Blvd.), Jan Kaminis Platt Regional Library (3910 S Manhattan Ave), New Tampa Regional Library (10001 Cross wCreek Blvd.), North Tampa Branch Library (8916 North Blvd.), Robert L. Gilder Elections Service Center (2514 N Falkenburg Rd.), West Tampa Branch Library (2312 W Union St.).
-Polls are open on Election Day from 7 a.m. To 7 p.m. at over 90 precincts throughout the city.
-Mail ballots are due by Election Day.
-Runoff is March 24.
This article appears in Feb 19-25, 2015.