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All seven Tampa City Council seats are contested this year and voters don't lack for solid candidates. We interviewed all 28 candidates and were impressed by most.
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Our choices for the general election.
Pasco County voters will decide Nov. 2 whether to retain county commission incumbents Pat Mulieri and Michael Cox. We recommend doing so - for different reasons. Pasco commissioners have geographical districts but are elected countywide.
Florida's Republican and Democratic parties traditionally nominate two well-qualified candidates for governor, which makes it hard for voters to go far wrong on Election Day. Usually whatever political differences there may be between the nominees, there is little doubt the candidates are trustworthy, capable and knowledgeable. Not this year.
With their selections in Florida House of Representative races, voters in the region will have an opportunity to considerably strengthen the local delegation and affect state policy. Today we offer four of our recommendations.
Of three state Senate seats on Tampa area ballots, two are easy calls and the third is so painful we can offer voters no help.
Amendment 8, which weakens the state class-size law, was placed on the November ballot by lawmakers, who said local school boards need more flexibility in meeting the law's strict requirements. But the champions of the class-size rule say the real goal is to help lawmakers avoid their fiscal obligations to schools, and they argue Amendment 8 will dismantle the progress that has been made since voters in 2002 overwhelmingly adopted the constitutional amendment. The law limits the number of students allowed per class to 18 in kindergarten through third grade; 22 in grades four through eight; and 25 in high school.
In our opening round of state House endorsements Thursday, The Tampa Tribune recommended James Grant in District 47, Darryl Rouson in District 55, Rachel Burgin in District 56 and Stacy Frank in District 57. Today we make our recommendations in another four races.
This year there are no judicial elections in Hillsborough County. But voters will have the chance to retain Chief Justice Charles Canady and Justices Jorge Labarga, James Perry and Ricky Polston of the Florida Supreme Court, as well as Judges Marva Crenshaw, Patricia Kelly, Nelly Khouzam, Robert Morris, Stevan Northcutt, Craig Villanti and Douglas Wallace of the 2nd District Court of Appeal.
In the race for U.S. Senate we have a candidate for change, a candidate for the status quo and an independent struggling to change the political landscape. Republican candidate Marco Rubio, a former speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, is being portrayed by his competitors as a tea party extremist. To be sure, he is conservative, but not blindly ideological. Kendrick Meek, a South Florida congressman and the Democrat's nominee, favors the Washington of President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. He would continue their policies. Gov. Charlie Crist, Republican turned independent, is an accomplished politician who can be slippery on the issues but unquestionably loves his state and is responsive to its citizens. We'd like to believe he is still the moderate conservative we've endorsed in the past, but he has been all over the map lately. And though we like the idea of a senator free of partisan theatrics, Washington doesn't usually bow to such idealism. Crist, if elected, likely would be a senator without clout. The best choice for Florida now is Rubio.
Voters in four Tampa Bay area congressional districts have a total of nine candidates to evaluate in mid-term elections next month that could mark a shift in power in the Democratic-controlled U.S. House.
The proposed "Hometown Democracy" constitutional amendment that would require voters to approve changes in local land-use plans is generating a lot of political fire. Proposed amendments on the drawing of legislative and congressional districts and easing state's class-size limits also are drawing attention.
The commissioner of agriculture and consumer services is one of the most important elected offices in Florida. The commissioner wields considerable influence over the agriculture industry and environmental initiatives and is one of four statewide elected officials who sit as the Florida Cabinet.
The race for U.S. Senate is wide open because the current, appointed occupant, Sen. George LeMieux, pledged not to run when he succeeded Mel Martinez last year. The Democratic primary between frontrunners U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek and billionaire businessman Jeff Greene has taken a nasty turn, which could work to the benefit of Gov. Charlie Crist, who left the Republican Party this year to run as an independent when it became clear he would lose the primary to Republican challenger Marco Rubio, a former speaker of the Florida House.
The Republican Party primary in Pasco County Commission District 2, which covers a large swath of the central part of the county, is an intriguing matchup between two veteran politicians who have called Pasco home for three decades.
Early voting starts Monday and runs through Aug. 21 for the Aug. 24 primary. We will publish this highlights box periodically. For complete endorsements, see the Tribune's opinion page on tbo.com.
Friday the Tribune endorsed Hernando County Sheriff Richard Nugent in the Republican primary in U.S. House District 5. Incumbent Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite is retiring.
Voters in the 5th and 9th congressional districts have different challenges this election season.
Rick Scott stresses government should operate more like a business, and voters should take that advice to heart in making their choice in the Republican primary for governor.
In primary races for the Florida House, the Tribune has endorsed Republicans James Grant in District 47, Marc Johnson in District 56 and Dan Molloy in District 57. Democrat Darryl Rouson has the Tribune endorsement in District 55.
The Tampa area has a relatively weak legislative delegation, it is widely agreed. Voters in the Aug. 24 primary obviously want to choose candidates who best represent their own views, but they should also consider who could work well with fellow lawmakers to give this region a stronger, more unified voice in Tallahassee.
In the District 12 state Senate race, Republican voters must choose between two veteran politicians who have their share of accomplishments and political liabilities.
The jolting deceleration of the economy has put county government under unprecedented strain.
The Hillsborough County School Board - the policymaking body for the county's public school system - is facing budgetary and other challenges that can only be met through strong leadership, detailed knowledge of operations and a commitment to change. This summer, the district is staring at a $41.9 million budget deficit. With property values continuing to drop and the local economy still struggling, next year is likely to bring yet another round of purse-tightening.
The election of judges is among the most difficult choices voters make because the candidates are prevented by judicial canons from addressing specific issues. As anyone who watched the Senate Judiciary Committee's recent grilling of Solicitor General Elena Kagan in her bid to become a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court will understand, judicial candidates will only speak in a broad sense about legal issues that may come before the court. We attempt in our interviews of the candidates to get a feel for their personality and temperament. We strive to get a sense of what they know and don't know and whether they have the organizational skills and ability to handle difficult and lengthy court dockets. We also talk to friends and colleagues of the candidates - judges, lawyers and litigants - to try to assess their temperament and abilities.
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