The day after an election in which he fought hard to keep his seat, Gulfport Mayor Sam Henderson is taking it easy.
Henderson had faced a formidable challenge from former councilwoman Barbara Banno, owner of the popular restaurant Stella's. Banno often said she was running because she did not like Henderson's handling of the controversial incident in which neighboring St. Petersburg dumped sewage into Clam Bayou, a troubled waterway the two cities share.The issue took center stage in the race, and plenty of mudslinging happened on social media.
But in the end, Henderson pulled in 59.35 percent of the votes to Banno's 40.65 percent; he won by some 850 votes.
Councilman Dan Liedtke, an ally of Henderson on the council, also successfully defended his seat against challenger April Thanos.
"I was really relieved that it came out the way it did and I was glad to have a solid win for sure," Henderson said.
He said he believed negativity coming from his opposition didn't go over well in a small city like Gulfport.
"Our city manager said to me a long time ago, when I first started doing this: people don't like to hear bad things about their neighbors. They don't like to hear bad things about where they lived," Henderson said. "So the community, the only way that you can really win a campaign in Gulfport is by staying positive, staying on message and not getting down in the dirt campaign-wise...They were definitely taking some shots at me, but to tell you the truth, the third time around, doing this, I felt pretty confident. That's not to say there weren't times when it was frustrating and challenging."
Among the first things he said he'll be bringing to the table in his second term as mayor is a fourth amendment to the agreement City Council is working on with St. Petersburg in the wake of the latter's dumping of millions of gallons of partially treated sewage into Clam Bayou, a body of water that sits between the two cities. The dump occurred in the wake of uncommonly heavy rains.
"The things that I felt that we needed were commitments from both sides to some pretty specific infrastructure improvements, how we're going to handle emergency protocols as far as notification between cities and notification to residents, and also, now we have a pretty good understanding of exactly how much rain is going to put us in a bad spot, that as opposed to being reactive in those situations we'll consult with each other and collaborate beforehand so that we won't end up with what we had last time."
Banno did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment, but CL caught up with her Tuesday as she campaigned outside a polling place in Gulfport.
"I feel like I ran a really good, strong campaign," she said. "One of the things I wanted to make sure I did was, when I look back, if it doesn't go my way, I never wanted to have any regrets. And the way I ran my campaign, I have no regrets."
She added that, while there was what seemed like bitter division in the lead-up to the election, she believes the small coastal city will again coalesce and once-differing factions will be willing to work together again.
"I hope so," said Jackie Kreuter, a Banno supporter who sat outside another polling place with her husband and was chatting with some friends who were holding Henderson signs. "Because a lot of us have been friends for years...What are we? Two and a half miles big? Twelve thousand residents? I could see it in St. Pete, you know, because it's so big. But Gulfport? That's crazy. So I feel that mudslinging, most of it came from the volunteers and the supporters. I don't think it came from the candidates."
