St. Petersburg City Council Member Gina Driscoll is endorsing Charlie Crist for Mayor, a nod that rejects both incumbent Mayor Ken Welch and Driscoll’s Council colleague, Brandi Gabbard.

Driscoll is the first sitting Council member to back Crist. Two members — Deborah Figgs-Sanders and Copley Gerdes — have endorsed Welch. With Gabbard also running, that leaves four City Council members’ support still up for grabs.

Driscoll wrote a glowing letter explaining her support for the former Governor, suggesting that current leadership has failed in delivering results for St. Petersburg.

“I believe St. Pete can be to ocean science what the Research Triangle is to technology if we have the right leadership. When the USF Marine Science Lab burned this spring, I responded alongside a community that refuses to give up. What it needs now is a Mayor who can bring real resources to the table,” she wrote. “That Mayor is Charlie Crist.”

Driscoll, who was first elected to the City Council in 2017, praised Crist for his ability to draw down funding in a variety of capacities. Crist has served in the Florida Senate, as Governor and as a United States Representative, in addition to Florida Attorney General and Education Commissioner.

“Charlie does not just talk about our marine science sector. He delivered millions in funding for USF’s College of Marine Science and Eckerd’s marine science program. He came to our research centers to learn what they needed, then went to Washington and got it done,” Driscoll said of Crist’s time representing Florida’s 13th Congressional District.

In a subtle dig to Welch, Driscoll said Crist’s work “is the difference between claiming credit and earning it.”

Driscoll, long passionate from the dais about the importance of arts programming and funding in the city, also praised Crist for his work on the issue.

“I fought for local arts funding and proposed the Artist Sustainability Fund because our creative community is not a luxury. It is an integral part of our economy and our local identity,” she said. “Charlie has understood that for decades. As a state Senator, he sponsored the State of the Arts license plate that still funds arts programs across Florida today.”

That’s in contrast to the current administration, Driscoll said, arguing that “St. Pete has been on pause.”

“Charlie is the person to restart the progress that made this city great,” she added.

Driscoll’s endorsement builds on a growing list of support for Crist, including most recently from state Rep. Allison Tant.

Crist also previously unveiled a larger slate of Democratic leaders supporting his campaign for Mayor, including U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, former U.S. Reps. Cheri Bustos of Illinois and Matt Cartwright of Pennsylvania, state Sen. Darryl Rouson, former state Rep. Ben Diamond, former Department of Juvenile Justice Secretary and former state Rep. Frank Peterman, current and former Tampa and St. Petersburg City Council members, and other political leaders.

Meanwhile, Crist continues to grow his fundraising dominance in the race, with more than $1.2 million available between his official campaign account and affiliated political committee, St. Pete Shines. Welch, Crist’s top competition for the job, has less than $260,000 available between his campaign account and his St. Petersburg Progress political committee.

Polling is also on Crist’s side, with a recent St. Pete Polls survey showing Crist leading Welch by more than 12 percentage points. The poll also found Crist leading the rest of the mayoral field by more than 17 percentage points. The crosstabs show troubling signs for the Welch campaign, with a notable decrease in Black voter support from a poll taken in March until the more recent poll in late June.

In March, Welch led among Black voters with 55% support, a huge lead over Crist, who posted just 16% support. But Crist gained 14 percentage points in the latest survey, while Welch slipped 13 percentage points, to just 42% support and only 12 points ahead of Crist among that demographic.

And the clock is winding down on this stretch of the election, with mail ballots already sent to overseas voters and ballots set to be delivered to domestic voters next week. That means voting will be underway soon for the Primary, with Election Day on Aug. 18 serving as the final day of voting.

If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, a runoff will be held in the General Election on Nov. 3.

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Ed. note: Michelle Todd Schorsch is the Chair of St. Pete Shines, a political committee backing Crist for St. Petersburg Mayor. Todd Schorsch is married to Schorsch, the publisher of Florida Politics.