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St. Petersburg, Hillsborough elections: Primaries set November showdowns
The St. Petersburg City Council ballot is set for November.State of play: Restaurant owner Pete Boland will face off against brewery owner Mike Harting for the District 3 seat, currently held by term-limited Ed Montanari.In District 7, former Florida House Rep. Wengay "Newt" Newton and Baptist minister Corey Givens were on track to emerge from the six-candidate pool to battle it out in November.Plus: District 5 will also be on the November ballot, with incumbent Deborah Figgs-Sanders fighting to keep her seat against real estate broker and entrepreneur Torrie Jasuwan.By the numbers: Boland got about 29% of the vote, with...
Vern Buchanan primed for another Congressional term with convincing primary win
See Sarasota election results See Manatee election results Longtime U.S. House Rep. Vern Buchanan cruised to another primary victory Tuesday night. Buchanan defeated challenger Eddie Speir in the Republican primary for...
Hillsborough commission considers reviving controversial PACE loan program
Hillsborough's GOP-led commission will discuss whether to revive a home-energy loan program which has been accused of "predatory behavior."Why it matters: Hundreds of homeowners have complained about the program, arguing that it takes advantage of those with low incomes and can cause them to lose their homes.Between the lines: The Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program offers financing options for "energy-efficient" home improvements, with costs added as a lien on the consumer's property tax bill.Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law last month that aims to improve oversight of the program. Consumer lawyers, however, have said that it "failed...
DeSantis-backed school board candidates fall in Hillsborough, Pinellas and Sarasota
According to unofficial results, 11 of the 23 candidates backed by the governor lost, while six won and six were headed to runoffs. Many of the candidates endorsed by Gov. Ron DeSantis lost their bid for school board seats around the state, a trend reflected in Sarasota, Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties on Tuesday.
Inside the New Tampa Performing Arts Center
The rapid growth of the suburbs in north Hillsborough County, Keith Arsenault believes, made the county-owned New Tampa Performing Arts Center necessary. Arsenault, who manages the state-of-the-art, 20,000-square-foot venue just north of Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, says there was a built-in audience base there, of music and theater fans who didn’t exactly love hopping on one interstate or another to catch a show in far-off downtown Tampa.
A Tampa-area transgender candidate advances to possible historic state House matchup
A few interesting races for Florida's House and Senate are taking shape now that the primary election votes have been counted. In Hillsborough County, Ashley Brundage won the Democratic primary for House District 65 in a landslide, with 81% of the vote. If she beats incumbent Karen Pittman, R-Tampa, in the general election, Brundage will become Florida's first transgender elected official.
2 dogs killed after fire engulfs Plant City home: HCFR
PLANT CITY, Fla. - A fire fully engulfed a home in Plant City late Tuesday night, leaving two dogs dead, according to Hillsborough County Fire Rescue. According to HCFR, at around 8:53 p.m., they responded to the house fire on Frank Moore Road after receiving 911 calls from a homeowner reporting smoke and flames.
Jury trial date set for Florida AG case against MV Realty
TAMPA, Fla. — The Florida Attorney General’s case against a South Florida realty company accused of locking homeowners into 40-year contracts and clouding hundreds of home titles will move forward with a jury trial in mid-October, a Hillsborough County judge said on Tuesday. Attorneys for the state and...
Warren set for a November battle with State Attorney Suzy Lopez
TAMPA, Fla. — Former State Attorney Andrew Warren has moved one step closer to his former job. Warren defeated his Democratic primary opponent, Elizabeth Strauss, by a 70%-30% margin. Warren has been elected state attorney by voters in Hillsborough County twice, but Governor Ron DeSantis suspended him during his...
Temple Terrace Police Launch Safety Campaign To Reduce Pedestrian And Bicyclist Crashes
TEMPLE TERRACE, Fla. – In response to Hillsborough County’s high rate of serious and fatal pedestrian and bicyclist crashes, the Temple Terrace Police Department is joining the Florida Department of Transportation’s High Visibility Enforcement (HVE) Program. From this month through May 2025, additional officers will patrol high-risk...
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