The seven men running for seats on the St. Petersburg City Council met once again today for a candidates' forum hosted by the Suncoast Tiger Bay Club.
The highlight? Undoubtedly the always original Wengay Newton, who, before giving his opening statement, serenaded his wife on her birthday as she sat surprised in the middle of the throng. That prompted State Representative Darryl Rouson moments later to say, "You can't make something like this up."
Also, Bob Kersteen is the only man on the November 8 ballot who believes the jury is still out regarding global warming.
Other than that, nothing too original was said during the event at the St. Pete Yacht Club.
District 7 challenger Gershom Faulkner was even more pronounced in trying to cast doubt about voters supporting his opponent, Wengay Newton, because of Newton being the lone vote in several 7-1 votes on the council during his first term in office.
This article appears in Oct 20-26, 2011.