{"id":253768,"date":"2026-05-01T11:06:18","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T11:06:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/253768\/"},"modified":"2026-05-01T11:06:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T11:06:18","slug":"charlie-crist-enters-st-pete-mayoral-race-says-he-wouldve-taken-state-to-court-over-mural-removals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/253768\/","title":{"rendered":"Charlie Crist enters St. Pete mayoral race, says he would\u2019ve taken state to court over mural removals"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AThen Pinellas County Commissioner Ken Welch (L) and then U.S. Rep Charlie Crist on at an Earth Day Press Conference on April 22, 2019. Credit: cityofstpete \/ Flickr<\/a><\/p>\n

St. Pete\u2019s crowded mayoral race has officially welcomed a long-anticipated contender with big pockets.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Charlie Crist\u2014former governor of Florida and U.S. representative for the state\u2019s 13th congressional district, which includes St. Petersburg and Clearwater\u2014filed his paperwork Monday, April 27.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With more than $1.2 million in contributions from his PAC, St. Pete Shines, Crist currently has the most financial support out of the five candidates running to unseat Mayor Ken Welch.<\/p>\n

Other candidates include retired Fire Chief Jim Large, District 2 Councilwoman Brandi Gabbard, Orange County Corrections administrator Maria Scruggs and Kevin Batdorf, former president of the Shore Acres Civic Association.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Paul Congemi previously ran but withdrew on April 21 due to health issues. In his handwritten resignation note<\/a>, he said Mayor Welch has his vote.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Voters will decide on the next mayor this during the primary election which wraps on Aug. 18, with a runoff on Nov. 3 if no candidate receives a majority vote.<\/p>\n

Crist, who is now a Democrat, served in the Florida Senate from 1993-1998 was elected as Florida\u2019s first Republican attorney general in 2002, four years before voters made him the state\u2019s 44th governor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The 69-year-old also ran for the U.S. Senate as an Independent, and he entered the 2014 Florida governors\u2019 race as a Democrat, losing both races.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Crist told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay his friends called him to encourage him to join the mayoral race last spring. He returned to the Bay area in time to qualify after visiting Minneapolis for almost a year to be with his soon-to-be Floridian fianc\u00e9 Chelsea Grimes.<\/p>\n

Mayor Welch\u2019s leadership essentially hasn\u2019t gotten St. Pete anywhere, Crist said, adding, \u201cI don\u2019t understand what\u2019s going on, but it feels like somebody\u2019s asleep at the switch.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

His grievances include how Welch handled major plans throughout his tenure, such as the city\u2019s development deal with the Tampa Bay Rays for Tropicana Field. He said the team\u2019s likely departure to Tampa is a \u201ccrushing disappointment to St. Petersburg.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe built this stadium without the guarantee of a team coming,\u201d Crist said. \u201cYou know, a lot of people, sweat equity and hard work into that effort. And now, it looks like they\u2019re leaving.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was also disappointed to see how a proposed satellite location for the Moffitt Cancer Center in downtown St. Pete \u201cfell through the cracks\u201d in 2022, when Welch rejected<\/a> it on the grounds that it didn\u2019t provide enough affordable housing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And when it comes to affordable housing, Crist told CL that Welch\u2019s solutions have been \u201cabsurd.\u201d In response, Crist\u2019s own campaign, which he said primarily addresses affordability, puts residential housing at the forefront specifically.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve got to make sure that you\u2019re utilizing common sense and you\u2019re in touch with what the citizens of St.<\/p>\n

Petersburg are having to deal with\u2014and not thinking that an $800,000 unit is an affordable future for most citizens in St. Pete,\u201d Crist said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

To achieve affordability within the city, Crist told CL he is pro-development through and through, as it improves affordability through employment and produces economic opportunity. But he said he specifically supports \u201csmart development,\u201d a balanced approach that preserves the \u201cdistinct charm\u201d and character of the city.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that you do have to be smart about it and understand that, if you over-develop, you may ruin the essence of what makes St. Petersburg very special,\u201d Crist told CL. \u201cI think we can develop so long as we do it smart, so long as we do it right and we don\u2019t overdo it in a way that sort of ruins the cherished place that we all love.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crist said he also wants to see development succeed in conversations that have long been debated between Mayor Welch and the city. That includes redevelopment proposals for the Gas Plant District, which was razed decades ago for Tropicana Field\u2019s construction.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The displaced community still awaits promises for success and opportunity, decades later. And Welch previously told CL<\/a> that he\u2019s open to proposals from developers, but the city continues to delay his plans.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Crist still chalked up the delay to Welch\u2019s inability to take action.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to have a process that makes sense, that gives you the opportunity to objectively evaluate each of the different proposals that have been put forward, to do it in a comprehensive way that doesn\u2019t delay,\u201d Crist told CL. \u201cAnd it\u2019s been delay after delay after delay in that process. Nothing\u2019s been accomplished.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crist believes that with his legal and civic background, he can finish the process and begin redevelopment for the district much sooner.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI know how to make a decision and to evaluate things to try to make sure that St. Petersburg continues to move forward instead of being stuck in the mud,\u201d Crist told CL. \u201cMy perspective is to try to get things done efficiently and effectively. And from what I\u2019ve witnessed so far, the mayor can\u2019t do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crist also said that if he were mayor last fall, he would\u2019ve simply leaned on First Amendment rights in order to oppose last year\u2019s state-mandated removal of five street and crosswalk murals in St. Pete. He wasn\u2019t pleased to see that Welch didn\u2019t take action.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, why the mayor chose that route, I don\u2019t understand, but I can tell you what I would have done,\u201d Crist told CL. \u201cI would have protected that right to free speech. I would have fought for it, and if necessary, gone to court to fight for it. And he did none of the above. And I don\u2019t know why.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Crist\u2019s campaign begins, he said he\u2019s open to the competition this year against Welch and five other candidates.<\/p>\n

\u201cI welcome them all as competitors in this race; I\u2019m going to vote for me,\u201d Crist said. \u201cAnd I hope that most citizens of St. Pete will feel the same if they\u2019re comfortable doing that, and I\u2019m working hard every day to try to earn their trust and their vote.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regarding investors, developers and out-of-town donors to Crist\u2019s PAC, he told CL that voters shouldn\u2019t be concerned about the goals of his supporters.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople who contribute to our campaign\u2014whether it\u2019s through our political committee or direct to the campaign\u2014they\u2019re contributing because they support what I have, a vision for the future of St. Petersburg,\u201d Crist said.<\/p>\n

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This article appears in Apr. 30 \u2013 May 06, 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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