Although five of the seven men and women who serve on the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners are up for re-election, only two of them (Kevin Beckner and Al Higginbotham) will face an opponent from a different political party this November.
So until then, the excitement is with two GOP primaries; in District 2, incumbent Victor Crist is being challenged by Tea Party activist Sharon Calvert, and in District 6, Margaret Iuculano is going up against Don Kruse, with the winner to face Democrat Kevin Beckner in a county wide race.
On Tuesday night at a Tampa912 County Commission Candidate Forum at American Legion Post 5 on Kennedy Boulevard, the four Republicans discussed themselves and the issues for almost 90 minutes.
A day after the cities of Tampa and Gulfport began allowing allowing same-sex couples to register as domestic partners, the candidates were asked if they favored implementing such a policy in Hillsborough, where there is already a push to do so.
The only member of the current board, Victor Crist, said he would not favor such a system, saying, "Why don't we just own up to personal responsibility? If you want to make sure you're protected, it's up to you to get with a lawyer and sit down and do it yourself…why is it the government's role to do that for you?" He elicited cheers from the audience of approximately 75 people.
This article appears in Jun 21-27, 2012.