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Earnest Williams

First rule of campaigning in the 21st century: register your damn name as a domain

in The Bay and the 'Burg by

How many more stories do we have to hear about some Luddite candidate getting caught off guard when their techno-savvy opponent purchases the domain name of the candidate who must have been living in the Dark Ages. The latest example of this is Marc Johnson, a candidate for Florida House District 56, crying foul after his opponent, state Rep. Rachel Burgin, thought far enough in advance to purchase www.marcjohnson.com. Forget about why Burgin did this.  The reasons are obvious and plentiful.  The…

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As vote looms to remove her as VP of St. Pete Democratic Club, Rene Flowers defends her endorsement of Bill Foster

in The Bay and the 'Burg by

At Wednesday’s meeting of the St. Petersburg Democratic Club, there is an agenda item to remove Rene Flowers as Vice President of the St. Petersburg Democratic Club because of her endorsement of Republican Bill Foster for Mayor of St. Petersburg. In her defense, Flowers wrote a scathing memo to Jack Killinsworth, the president of the SPDC, outlining not only why she supports Foster, but also criticizing the club, the Pinellas Democratic Party and other local Democrats for their inconsistent support…

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Steve Kornell jabs at Angela Rouson in dueling mail-pieces to early voters

in Peter/The Bay and the 'Burg by

The question “Who says…?” is at the center of the debate between Steve Kornell and Angela Rouson in their campaign to win the District 5 seat on the St. Petersburg City Council. Both candidates mailed direct mail-pieces (both of which are heads-and-shoulders better than the butt-wipe the Mayoral Candidates mailed out) to the so-called early voters and the differences between the two is obvious: Steve Kornell is a recreation leader, Angela Rouson is a leader, period. Kornell’s mail-piece is actually…

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What is Rick Baker’s endorsement really worth?

in The Bay and the 'Burg by

Now that Rick Baker is saying he could endorse a candidate in the primary after previously indicating he would wait until the general election, let’s take a look at the real or perceived value of a Baker endorsement. Let’s begin with the obvious: Baker can’t endorse Jamie Bennett. Despite the fact that Bennett is the closest Baker has to a political heir, he just cannot waste his endorsement on Bennett. (What a shame, because if all had gone well, Bennett could…

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Where are the candidates for City Council?

in The Bay and the 'Burg by

Around St. Petersburg’s City Hall, you can’t step over a homeless person without bumping into someone running for Mayor. With Larry Williams throwing his hat in the ring last week, there are currently nine people hoping to replace Rick Baker. Being a candidate for mayor is the only job sector in town that’s a growth industry. Where then are all the candidates for St. Petersburg City Council? There are five seats up for grabs this year, and currently there are…

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Hate crimes skyrocket in Florida with St. Pete leading the way

in Peter by

If 32 murders this year in St. Pete wasn’t bad enough, the city also reported 49 hate crime incidents, most of any Florida city and the majority of Pinellas’ 63 reported cases, according to a study released today by Attorney General Charlie Crist. Not such a great day in St. Petersburg, is it Mr. Mayor? In the city’s defense, Police Chief Chuck Harmon cut short his holiday vacation to hold a news conference about the numbers. The figures were an…

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