ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Five of the candidates running for St. Petersburg mayor will face off in a debate Tuesday night.
It comes a little more than two months ahead of August’s primary election and is scheduled to take place at the President Barack Obama Main Library at 5:30 p.m.
The St. Petersburg NAACP will host the debate, and its president said to expect moderators to touch on some of the most pressing issues facing the city.
Those include the future of the Gas Plant district now that it looks like the Tampa Bay Rays might leave Tropicana Field for Tampa, as well as a possible drastic cut to homestead property tax revenue and what that will mean for residents.
In addition to current Mayor Ken Welch, candidates expected to take the debate stage Tuesday night include former Shore Acres Civic Association President Kevin Batdorf, former Florida governor and U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, City Councilwoman Brandi Gabbard and former NAACP St. Pete branch president Maria Scruggs.
Esther Sanni with the NAACP said the next mayor has some work to do, like continuing recovery from the hurricanes of 2024.
“We still have pockets of our city that are repairing, and rebuilding, and trying to level set and get back to where they were, right?” Sanni said. “We have individuals that are unhoused, and they are unhoused not because they cannot pay for rent, but that they cannot afford the rent.”
Former fire chief Jim Large is in the running for mayor as well, but Sanni said he didn’t respond to an invitation to the debate.
Sanni said it will be a presidential-style debate. There will be three moderators — two onstage who will rotate questions based on sections, and another on the floor to navigate the lightning round and audience questions that the public will be able to submit via a QR code.
Spectrum Bay News 9’s Sarah Blazonis will be at the debate and will have coverage on-air, online and on the Spectrum News app.