Candidates vying for St. Petersburg mayor in this year’s election took the debate stage on Tuesday night, and the Florida Cabinet approved about $90 million to reimburse local law enforcement agencies from across the state for their expanded role in immigration enforcement.
5 candidates make case to be St. Pete’s mayor
Five of the candidates running for St. Petersburg mayor faced off in a debate Tuesday night.
It came a little more than two months ahead of August’s primary election and took place at the President Barack Obama Main Library at 5:30 p.m.
The debate was hosted by the St. Petersburg NAACP, 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 revenues and what that will mean for residents.
Candidates expected to take the debate stage included current Mayor Ken Welch, former Shore Acres Civic Association President Kevin Batdorf, former Florida Gov. 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 would be a presidential-style debate. There were 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 submitted via QR code.
Florida Cabinet approves about $90 million for immigration enforcement
The Florida Cabinet on Tuesday voted to reimburse local law enforcement agencies from across the state for their expanded role in immigration enforcement.
About $90 million was allocated for the new immigration enforcement grant program.
The money was designated to reimburse local agencies for expenses like equipment, plus overtime pay.
The biggest allocation in this round goes to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
Among other items, OCSO requested $10 million to cover portable radios and more.
“Florida continues to lead the nation in protecting public safety and enforcing the rule of law,” Florida Board of Immigration Executive Director Anthony Coker said. “Our state has taken decisive action to ensure that dangerous criminal legal aliens are identified, arrested and removed from our communities.”
The round of funding approved Tuesday is in addition to nearly $5 million dished out earlier this year.
Florida is among the most willing state partners of immigration agencies like the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency. Since last year, state officials said they have recorded about 25,000 immigration-related requests.
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