CANDIDATES CORNER
Candidates Corner is a resource provided by the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce to share information with our 1,400+ members and the broader community. All content featured here is supplied directly by individual candidates to help inform voters about their priorities, background, and vision for St. Petersburg and Pinellas County.
An informed voting public strengthens our community, and accessible information supports that goal. To check your voter registration status, click here.
Our Commitment to Nonpartisanship
The St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce is a nonpartisan organization and does not endorse or oppose any candidate or political party. Identical participation opportunities were offered to all candidates, including the option to provide responses in writing or by video.
Candidates interested in being featured may contact Gracie Glover at advocacyintern@stpete.com.
*Candidates are grouped by race and listed alphabetically by last name.
LOCAL OFFICES
St. Petersburg Mayor
Candidate Name: Charlie Crist
Campaign Website: charliecrist.com
The city of St. Petersburg cannot declare itself a complete success until all of its residents are enjoying that success. Right now, too many are being left behind by a city that’s on pause. An ongoing affordability crisis is leaving residents to make harsh financial decisions, sometimes choosing whether to eat or get medical care. That’s not only bad for St. Petersburg families, it’s bad for our local economy. When residents face tough financial times, they lack the disposable income needed to reinvest those dollars into the small, locally-owned businesses that are the lifeblood of our local economy. As Mayor, I will work to ensure an adequate supply of safe, affordable housing, while also prioritizing measures that promote vocational training and apprenticeship programs that allow everyone to obtain living-wage careers. And that starts with our youth, too. My campaign is also prioritizing youth opportunity, supporting those who are college-bound as well as those who have determined a different career path. No administration should pick winners and losers, and as Mayor I’ll ensure everyone has the ability to thrive regardless of zip code or family background. A thriving St. Petersburg means a thriving population. You simply cannot have one without the other.
Our small businesses are the engine that fuels our local economy. I believe in capitalism done right, and free market principles are undeniably a part of a business’ success or failure. But when hard times are upon us, as they are now with record inflation and soaring costs of everyday goods and services, local government has a responsibility to step in to help wherever and however possible. To be clear, this is not about hand outs, but as mayor I pledge to evaluate ways city policies can make it easier for businesses to thrive, and for job creators to call St. Pete home. The city’s permitting process is in shambles, creating an ideal starting point for meaningful reform. But just as no two businesses are exactly the same, city policies cannot be one-sized fits all. To ensure help is reaching businesses that need it, in the way that is needed, my administration will consistently reach out to the business community for input on needs, whether that’s a new policy or changing an old one. As Mayor, my door will always be open to those who have needs to share.
Candidate Name: Ken Welch
Campaign Website: kenwelch.com/
My vision is a St. Petersburg and Pinellas County where economic opportunity is shared, businesses can grow with confidence, families can afford to live where they work, and our community is prepared for the challenges of the future. Success isn't measured by growth alone. It's measured by whether people have access to good jobs, safe neighborhoods, attainable housing, reliable infrastructure, and a high quality of life.
Since taking office, we've focused on building that foundation. We've exceeded the halfway target of our 10-year Housing Opportunities for All Plan by creating and preserving more than 3,500 affordable and workforce housing units through completed projects and developments underway. We've supported redevelopment of underutilized properties, expanded accessory dwelling units, invested in neighborhood commercial corridors, and partnered with the private sector to increase housing supply while preserving affordability.
We've also strengthened public safety, reducing overall crime by 16 percent and recording the fewest homicides in St. Petersburg since 1967. At the same time, we've invested in innovative technologies like Drone as First Responder, while continuing to support our police officers and firefighters with the equipment and resources they need.
The storms of 2024 reinforced that resilience must be central to our future. Through our St. Pete Agile Resilience (SPAR) initiative, we've accelerated more than $545 million in infrastructure investments to modernize stormwater systems, strengthen utilities, improve flood protection, and prepare our city for future weather events. Those investments protect residents, businesses, and our local economy.
Economic opportunity also depends on developing talent. Programs like Future Ready Academy are preparing residents for careers with the City, while partnerships with employers, educational institutions, and workforce organizations are helping connect people to family-sustaining jobs in growing industries.
My role as Mayor is to continue bringing together local governments, employers, educational institutions, labor organizations, nonprofits, and community leaders around shared priorities. Government cannot solve every challenge alone, but it can create the conditions for innovation, investment, and collaboration. By continuing to make smart investments, maintaining fiscal discipline, and listening to stakeholders, we can ensure St. Petersburg remains one of the most desirable places in America to live, work, visit, and do business.
Partnership has defined my administration from day one. The business community isn't simply a stakeholder; it's an essential partner in creating solutions that benefit our entire region.
One of the best examples is housing. Through our Housing Opportunities for All Plan, we've worked closely with developers, financial institutions, nonprofit housing organizations, employers, and neighborhood leaders to accelerate the production and preservation of affordable and workforce housing. Those partnerships have allowed us to exceed key benchmarks while leveraging both public and private investment.
We've also partnered with businesses on workforce development through initiatives like Future Ready Academy, expanded opportunities for local and small businesses to compete for City contracts, and supported entrepreneurship through programs that provide technical assistance, access to capital, and neighborhood commercial revitalization.
Looking ahead, I believe our greatest opportunities are strengthening our resilience, preparing our workforce for emerging industries, improving transportation connections, expanding housing options, and supporting innovation in sectors like marine science, healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, and technology. Institutions such as the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, the Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, and the Tampa Bay Innovation Center are helping position our region as a leader in innovation, and City Hall must continue helping create the environment where those partnerships flourish.
My commitment is to maintain an open door and a collaborative approach. That means regular engagement with business organizations, listening before making decisions, removing unnecessary barriers where appropriate, investing strategically in infrastructure, and ensuring City government is responsive, predictable, and accountable.
When government provides stability and vision, businesses invest with confidence. And when businesses invest in our community, they create jobs, expand our tax base, strengthen neighborhoods, and help ensure every resident has the opportunity to succeed. That's the partnership I will continue building over the next four years.
St. Petersburg City Council
My vision for a thriving St. Petersburg and Pinellas County is one where all residents can live with dignity, provide for their families, and have the ability to engage with their government and community. I believe that the office of the City Council has a critical role to play in achieving that vision. My job is to work collaboratively to change or create policy that addresses barriers and opportunities to achieving this vision. Additionally, my job is to identify the city's role in the overall systemic change that will need to occur to further this vision and how I can advocate and coalition-build with county, regional, and state leaders.
As a small business owner, I believe that the business community has a vital role to play in addressing our region's most pressing challenges and opportunities. We face an affordability crisis that requires stakeholders from every sector to work together to address. Whether it is affordable housing, workforce development, infrastructure upgrades, or strengthening our social fabric, the business community needs to be part of our regional strategy. Access to higher-income jobs, opportunities for entrepreneurs, and smart growth are key components in addressing these challenges and are provided overwhelmingly by the business community.
Pinellas County Commissioner
To continue representing residents in a transparent and fiscally responsible way recognizing the unique challenges of our time regarding affordability, continued hurricane recovery, infrastructure resilience, and transportation challenges, ensuring an environment where families and business can thrive. The potential elimination of property tax creates an opportunity to discuss consolidation of smaller municipalities and fire service delivery with the potential for significant savings to taxpayers. The creation of a regional MPO between Pinellas, Hillsborough and Pasco will make the region far more competitive on federal grant applications for transformative transportation projects and enhance regional attractiveness for companies to start or re-locate their businesses here. The completion of a new county campus at Ulmerton & U.S. 19 will improve the interaction between residents and county government by centralizing functions in the heart of the county with the disposition of the county owned parcels in downtown Clearwater a catalyst for re-activation and re-development of Clearwater. "Penny V" will need to be on the 2028 ballot for voter approval. Creating the funding vision and list of projects for the next decade will be critical for the passage of this important source of funding for infrastructure, and affordable housing initiatives. On public safety, passing an Ebike ordinance, and a bill of rights for residents who are the victims of unscrupulous towing operators.
As an owner of a second-generation family business myself that started right here in Pinellas in 1983, I understand the dedication, blood, sweat and tears it takes to build a business from the ground up and contribute to the community along the way. Approaching every aspect of the job of County Commissioner through the lens of business efficiency, including regulatory framework, taxation and workforce development. It is our job to create the environment for business to thrive, then get out of the way. My door will always be open to meet with business owners, executives, chambers, and of course supporting Pinellas County Economic Development and St. Pete EDC.
David Glenn Jr. is not a career politician. He has worked hard all his life to achieve his goals and aspirations. Like many of you, he has a mortgage, drives an older car, and does his own laundry and shopping. As your next Pinellas County Commissioner, David will share his ideas and work with others to implement the innovative plans outlined below. Some of these strategies include investment in our community through Intelligent land development initiatives that will allow our property tax base to be increased while not increasing property taxes and the increased promotion of tourism into Pinellas County. The County can then take those revenues and reinvest them back into the community for the benefit of Pinellas County residents. Some of these would include needed infrastructure improvements, investment in local and County services such as public transit, parks & recreation, library services, building& zoning, animal rescue, adoption and rehabilitation services, affordable housing for teachers, first responders, seniors and veterans, and more.
The business community will benefit by getting a revised planning and zoning department to streamline development and being able to create more leasable area, whether it is retail, office, residential or a mixture of any of them. This will encourage increased spending and investment in our local communities. Additionally, the added tourism will also increase the spending within the county by bringing outside money into Pinellas County and then spent locally. It's all about "Building a Better Pinellas, a Better Future for all of us!"
Pinellas County School Board Member
A thriving Pinellas County is one where families want to live, businesses want to invest, and students are prepared to succeed in school, work, and life. Strong public schools are essential to that vision.
As a School Board member, my role will be to support and retain great teachers, strengthen community partnerships, and ensure students have access to the academic, technical, and life skills needed for the future. By building trust in public education and working collaboratively with families, educators, businesses, and community organizations, we can create opportunities that benefit both students and our community.
Partnerships have been a central theme of my campaign because no single organization can solve our community's challenges alone. Throughout my career, I have worked to bring together schools, businesses, nonprofits, workforce organizations, and government agencies around shared goals. As a School Board member, I would continue building those relationships to expand career pathways, mentorship opportunities, internships, and support services for students and families. Strong partnerships allow us to leverage community resources, strengthen our workforce pipeline, and create opportunities that benefit both students and our region.
STATE OFFICES
Florida Senate
St. Petersburg and Pinellas County thrive when small business thrives, and in our region that starts with resilience. My vision is a community that is ready before the next storm and able to recover fast after it, where families and businesses can rebuild without being held up by needless permitting delays, and where our infrastructure is built to withstand what we know is coming. From that foundation, I want a region where employers face fewer barriers to growth, where taxes stay low and predictable, where our transportation and tourism economy keeps creating jobs, and where the people who built their lives here can afford to stay. I will keep working with the business community to strengthen storm readiness, remove obstacles to investment, protect taxpayers, and make sure state government is a partner to Pinellas rather than an obstacle.
I will support local small business the way I always have: by cutting unnecessary regulation, opposing tax increases, defending property owners and employers from costly mandates, and championing the transportation and economic-development investments that keep our region competitive. As a former chamber chairman and a small-business owner who met a payroll for nearly three decades, I understand what local employers need, and I will keep being a direct line for the Pinellas business community in Tallahassee.
Florida House of Representatives
My vision for a thriving St. Petersburg and Pinellas County is deeply personal because this is not simply where I live, this is my home. My family has been part of this community for generations, and I want the families who are here today to be able to stay, build their lives, and pass down that same sense of belonging.
A thriving Pinellas strikes the right balance between welcoming growth while preserving what makes our community such a special place to live. It means supporting small businesses, attracting companies that create high-paying jobs, and building a plentiful workforce of skilled workers. It also means ensuring children are reading at grade level by third grade and that our schools and workforce-training programs prepare people for successful careers.
We should be able to grow without losing the character of our neighborhoods, the beauty of our waterfront, our vibrant arts community, or the quality of life that makes people proud to call Pinellas home. Growth should create opportunity, not price out the families and businesses that built this community.
That future also requires us to plan wisely. We need roads, stormwater systems, utilities, and other infrastructure that can support our community for the next 100 years and for generations to come. We must ensure people can afford to live, work, and enjoy everything our community has to offer, while smart growth protects the character of our neighborhoods, waterfront, and arts community.
As a fourth-generation St. Petersburg businesswoman, I have spent nearly 30 years working on the cost side of real estate and bringing complicated projects across the finish line. I have seen firsthand how insurance, property taxes, utilities, permitting delays, and aging infrastructure affect household budgets and the cost of doing business. I also know that good ideas are not enough, the laws passed in Tallahassee must be properly written, funded, and implemented so they actually work here at home.
As State Representative, my role will be to listen, build partnerships, and make sure Tallahassee understands what St. Petersburg and Pinellas County need to thrive. My office will bring together local leaders, businesses, educators, and community organizations to turn this vision into action. I will fight for meaningful property-tax relief, a more competitive insurance market to lower costs, responsible government spending, and a more predictable permitting process. I will work to secure accountable investments in roads, drainage, stormwater, utilities, clean water, and coastal resilience while strengthening education and workforce development.
A thriving Pinellas is one where growth creates opportunity without pushing out the families and businesses that built our community. I want our children and grandchildren to inherit a community filled with opportunity, one that has grown responsibly without losing the heart, character, and sense of place that have always made it home.
The business community should be involved from the beginning, not consulted after decisions are made. Business owners understand firsthand how insurance, workforce shortages, permitting delays, infrastructure, housing costs, and regulations affect our economy.
I will keep an open, accessible office, hold regular business roundtables, visit employers throughout the district, and create a direct way for businesses to flag unnecessary regulations and explain how proposed laws would work in practice. I will also bring employers, schools, and colleges together to expand apprenticeships, industry certifications, and career pathways in high-demand fields.
My goal is to treat local businesses as problem-solving partners, helping the companies already here grow, create higher-paying jobs, and remain part of our community for the long term.
My vision for a thriving St. Petersburg and Pinellas County is a community where everyone feels welcome, where the cost of living does not force young families to leave or seniors out of the homes they have built their lives in. It is a place where young people have meaningful third spaces to gather with friends, build community, and give back. It is a place where teachers are valued, fairly compensated, and trusted to lead with their expertise. As a state representative, I will work every day in Tallahassee to ensure the policies and laws I support are centered on the real needs of the people I serve. I will work to bring state funds back to the County and the City to support grants access for small businesses and investing in expansion of clean energy workforce programs that will create jobs for Floridians and reduce our reliance on fossil fuel energy.
As a state representative, I will remain accessible and responsive to the community. Business leaders will know they can reach me and my in-district office, which will be centrally located in the county. I will meet the business community where they are by attending meetings, offering monthly office hours, and working quickly to address pressing challenges and seize new opportunities.
FEDERAL OFFICES
U.S. Senate
Candidate Name: Angie Nixon
Campaign Website: angienixon.com
My vision is a St. Petersburg and Pinellas County where working families, small business owners, retirees, veterans, and young people can afford to live, work, and build their future. That means addressing the rising cost of housing, stabilizing insurance costs, investing in transportation and infrastructure, protecting our coastline and environment, and ensuring that economic growth benefits everyone, not just a select few.
As Florida’s next United States Senator, I will fight for policies that lower costs for families, expand access to affordable healthcare, support workforce development, strengthen disaster resilience, and bring federal resources back to our communities. I believe economic success and quality of life go hand in hand. My role will be to advocate for practical solutions that help local communities thrive while ensuring that federal government works for the people and businesses that drive our economy every day.
Strong communities require strong partnerships between government, workers, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, and the business community. I believe business leaders should have a seat at the table when discussing economic development, workforce training, infrastructure improvements, housing affordability, and disaster preparedness.
I am a small business owner, running my own bookstore, Cafe Resistance, which employs young people, provides free meeting space to community groups and educational programming for the public. As Senator, I will maintain an open line of communication with chambers of commerce, other small businesses, entrepreneurs, and major employers throughout Pinellas County and across Florida. I will actively seek input from the business community on federal policies and work collaboratively to identify solutions that help businesses grow while creating good jobs and strengthening our local economy. I am committed to advancing policies that support both economic opportunity and shared prosperity.
U.S. House of Representatives
We need to address the economic vitality of the working class of this region. The acquisitive power—or purchasing power—of St Pete/Pinellas is the primary engine behind us enjoying a vibrant local economy. When residents have disposable income and the means to spend, it triggers a powerful economic multiplier effect that sustains local businesses and public services. Unfortunately, we are mired in a negative feedback loop that continues to erode this acquisitive power, with the United Way finding nearly 50% of our region's population living paycheck to paycheck (ALICE population). Our federal government has been an active participant in eroding this power, and it must stop and be reversed. Illegal tariff wars ($2000 cost/household/year), elimination of ACA health insurance subsidies ($200-$1000+/month/household), 78% increase in property insurance in three years, $400 increase in gas/month per household, etc - all due to a Congress that is abdicating its responsibility to our citizens. It is time for our government to represent the vast majority of citizens, small & medium businesses that are under assault and I will be that accountable representative.
The current Congressional representative of this district has not hosted a town hall in over a decade. That will change immediately, with published town halls, not only in Pinellas/St. Pete but throughout this gerrymandered 6-county district. At the core of job creation and economic vitality are our small and medium-sized businesses throughout the region that will be centered in our work in Washington, having iterative conversations that support these job creators and ensure that our federal government is no longer a hostile threat to business, but a catalytic partner in empowering growth. As a past St. Pete Chamber of Commerce board member for over a decade, I am excited about this opportunity to partner with the Chamber, its membership and the community to bring this serious representation for our region in Washington.
2026 Election Season Education Opportunities
Meet the Candidates
The St. Petersburg Chamber hosted 41 candidates and over 300 attendees on August 6 at Tropicana Field for Meet the Candidates. The event was presented by Spectrum and Tampa Bay Rays. A straw poll was conducted for the first time, view the press release including straw poll results here.
Friday Forums
These informal conversations will include candidate remarks, audience questions, and opportunities for attendees to engage directly with candidates in a conversational setting. Save the dates!
• August 28 | Mayoral and City Council Candidates
• September 18 | County and School District Candidates
• October 2 | Governor, State Senate, House Candidates
• October 16 | U.S. Congress and U.S. Senate Candidates
Chamber Members only, registration required. Click here to learn more and save your spot.
"What's on the Ballot"
The forum on September 29 will feature an in-depth discussion led by subject matter experts examining two of the most significant measures facing voters this year: the Florida Property Tax Amendment and the City of St. Petersburg General Obligation Bond.
The event is hosted and sponsored by Orlando Health Bayfront Hospital. Lunch is included, click here to learn more and save your spot.
