St. Pete Shines touted several prominent political figures who donated to Crist. Those include former West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer.<\/p>\n
Crist expressed pride and gratitude for both previous and current support. He is simultaneously \u201cextremely humbled\u201d and \u201cpleasantly overwhelmed\u201d by the amount he has raised.<\/p>\n
\u200b\u201dFortunately, I have a lot of friends, and they\u2019ve been very kind to me,\u201d Crist told the Catalyst. \u201cAnd I love them for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crist was a Republican during his time as Florida\u2019s attorney general and governor. He became an independent in 2010 and lost a U.S. Senate bid before registering as a Democrat and securing a congressional seat in 2016.<\/p>\n
Following two reelections, Crist resigned in 2022 to run for governor. St. Pete Shines listed 16 Tallahassee addresses in its first state filing, inlcuding $45,000 from Tallahassee-based We Should All Help, his biggest donation, not inlcuding the PAC transfer.<\/p>\n
Incumbent Mayor Ken \u200bWelch, who lacks the statewide and national political connections one would expect from a former governor and U.S. representative, sits nearer the other end of the spectrum. State records show that 34 of his 65 donor addresses, 52%, are from St. Petersburg, with another nine addresses from elsewhere within Pinellas County.<\/p>\n
\u200bWelch\u2019s political action committee (PAC), The Pelican<\/a>, does not list a single address from the state\u2019s capitol. \u201cI serve the people of St. Petersburg, period \u2013 not special interest, Washington PACs or outside donors backing my likely opponent,\u201d he said in a prepared statement.<\/p>\n \u200b\u201cThis race is about protecting St. Petersburg\u2019s future and making sure it works for everyone, not just the well-connected.\u201d<\/p>\n Mayor Ken Welch also spoke at the Jan. 9 groundbreaking ceremony.<\/p>\n \u200bWelch\u2019s top donors of $25,000 each include three local real estate and development firms, the Tampa Bay Rays<\/a>, Green Savoree Racing (promoter of the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg) and Neptune Flood<\/a> CEO Trevor Burgess. Burgess also gave $5,000 to Crist.<\/p>\n \u200bWelch said his donor list \u201clooks like every other mayor or county commissioner.\u201d He expects a \u201cvery diverse\u201d group of small and large donors to contribute after he files for reelection.<\/p>\n In total, The Pelican has raised $282,800 for Welch since January 2025. Crist\u2019s St Pete Shines sits at $725,145 from all sources.\u00a0 Neither he nor Crist has officially filed to run for mayor.<\/p>\n \u200b\u201cI wish that we didn\u2019t have to raise any money,\u201d Welch said. \u201cI didn\u2019t make the rules about political committees. Before the mayoral race, I think I only raised $90,000 for any of my county commission races.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Welch-at-SC_MP-e1768409894527.png\")
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