State Sen. Darryl Rouson, a staple of Democratic politics in St. Pete and the city’s Black community, will vote for Charlie Crist in the upcoming mayoral election, he announced in a new ad.

Rouson had previously endorsed both Crist and incumbent Mayor Ken Welch. But while he maintains a positive outlook about Welch, Rouson said in the ad that he’ll be supporting the former Governor at the ballot box.

“We are blessed as a city to have a large crop of good candidates. Two candidates stand out as I have previously said — Gov. Crist and Mayor Welch, both longtime supporters and friends,” Rouson says in the ad.

“However, elections come down to a choice, and when I fill out my mail ballot, I must pick one. My choice to lead the city next year and the years to follow is the one in which I know will take St Pete the furthest and that choice is Charlie Crist.”

Rouson only names Welch in the ad with praise, but reading between the lines suggests Rouson identified a key difference.

“I’ve known Charlie for decades. He leads with compassion, integrity, and he has always put people before politics. He shows up. And he’ll do that for every neighborhood in this city,” Rouson said.

That sentence is full of subtle potential digs on the incumbent. A recent ad launched by St. Pete Shines, the political committee supporting Crist’s bid for Mayor, spotlighted a 2023 Tampa Bay Times exposes outlining how in his first year in office, Welch swiped his keycard into City Hall just 34% of workdays. The comment about Crist that “he shows up,” seems relevant.

Rouson also mentions that Crist will show up for every neighborhood, another possible critique on Welch’s tenure that has seen some constituents argue Welch is prioritizing neighborhoods on the Southside and in Black communities, while other areas of the city go at least somewhat ignored, a contention Welch has disputed.

But the ad is most significant because it offers a more full-throated endorsement than what was previously on offer. In June, Rouson endorsed both Crist and Welch, offering praise for both and saying he had not yet decided to vote for.

In the ad, Rouson puts the ambiguity to rest with a call to action.

“Please join me in supporting Charlie Crist for Mayor of St Petersburg with your vote by mail, early or at the polls. That’s my choice and I hope you make it yours,” he wrote, signing off with “God bless you and God bless St. Petersburg.”

Rouson was elected to the House in 2008 and to the Senate in 2016. He will leave office this year because of term limits, ending a legislative career of about 18 years.

Rouson is a highly trusted leader in the city’s Black community. By supporting Crist, he sends a strong message to Black residents, some of whom may not want to stop supporting the city’s first Black Mayor.

That is especially impactful now, after recent polling showed Welch’s support among Black voters waning.

A St. Pete Polls survey conducted in the final days of June found Crist 12 percentage points ahead of Welch overall.

But what’s potentially worse news for the incumbent is it found him bleeding support among the Black community, dropping from 55% support in March to just 42% in late June. Where Welch dropped 13 percentage points, Crist climbed 14 percentage points, from 16% support in March to 30% in the more recent poll. Now, Welch is just 12 percentage points ahead of Crist among the city’s Black voters.

Rouson’s exclusive support also comes as Crist continues to dominate fundraising. As of the most recent campaign finance reports last week, Crist has more than $1.2 million available between his official campaign account and affiliated political committee, St. Pete Shines. Welch has less than $260,000 available between his campaign account and his St. Petersburg Progress political committee.

Crist’s list of endorsers is on the rise, too. St. Petersburg City Council Member Gina Driscoll became the first on the board to back Crist, a decision that bucked both the incumbent and Driscoll’s colleague, Brandi Gabbard, who is also running for Mayor.

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, 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.

Also running in the race are former Shore Acres Neighborhood Civic Association President Kevin Batdorf, former St. Pete Fire Chief Jim Large and jail administrator Maria Scruggs. All are polling in the single digits.

If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote in the Primary, the top two finishers will advance to a runoff 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 Peter Schorsch, the publisher of Florida Politics.