The lack of an incumbent, a large number of independent voters and a crowded field of candidates make this a wide-open race.
By JOSH ZIMMER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times, published September 5, 2002
State House District 47 has changed since the 2000 elections. Legislators removed the portion that stretched along the Pinellas-Pasco county line to Tarpon Springs and left a district with a distinct Northwest Hillsborough identity, one encompassing Carrollwood, Forest Hills, Keystone-Odessa and parts of Lutz.
The district's 75,610 registered voters are evenly split between Republicans and Democrats. What's more, unaffiliated and small party voters tally a considerable 21 percent.
With Republican incumbent Rob Wallace forced out by term limits, a flood of candidates has rushed in. Although most have extensive records of public service, none has a household name. Their ages span a range of 34 years.
For most, improving the state's public education system ranks tops on their priority lists, followed by growth management, economic development and health care.
The Republicans are represented by marketing consultant Jill Collins and lawyers Kevin Ambler and William Mitchell. The Democratic candidates are lawyer Michael Steinberg, environmental activist Lynn McGarvey and engineer Robert Safarik. Internal auditor Robert Schwartzberg is running unopposed for the Libertarian Party, and will not appear on the ballot until the general election.
Brian Rush, a Democrat who represented the district for four terms before losing to Wallace in 1994, is not surprised by the number of candidates.
"We had three Republicans and three Democrats back in '86," he said, remembering the year he first ran.
Rush thinks he knows the key to victory in 2002: "Whoever's going to do it has got to appeal to the independents."
On the Republican side, Jill Collins and Kevin Ambler proudly call themselves as conservative as Wallace.
Collins is an insider with deep connections to the business community. A Bush appointee to the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, she considered running for the Hillsborough County Commission two years ago but chose to support Joe Chillura's unsuccessful campaign instead.
Ambler, a decorated major and military judge for the Air Force Reserves, criticizes Collins for accepting thousands of dollars from pro-business political action committees located outside the district.
He bills himself as the most qualified candidate in terms of experience and education. The claim is a none-too-subtle slam on Collins' educational background. Despite attending Southeastern University and Eckerd College, she does not have a degree.
Collins rejects any suggestion she would be too pro-business. Instead, she said she could be effective from the start.
"I have a lot of contacts," she said. "And it is a statewide seat."
William Mitchell, who has written two books on law, is playing catch-up but feels he can compete. "I think the race is pretty much an open race at this point," he said.
To reduce health care costs for small businesses, he believes the state should consider creating a buying pool that would give them more clout with insurance companies.
Much to the frustration of the Hillsborough Democratic Party leadership, the Democratic race has grown increasingly crowded.
"When you're short on money, then you spread your resources around," former Hillsborough Democratic Party Chairman Mike Scionti said in an interview before his death in August. "So why would I be excited about have three Democrats running in a state race?"
Scionti's choice was Michael Steinberg, a lawyer who handles Social Security issues, emphasizes his expertise on health care issues and his support from unions, including two representing teachers. He would fund expanded health care for the poor with a half-cent statewide sales tax increase.
But Lynn McGarvey is convinced that Steinberg does not fully grasp environmental and growth management issues. As a Sierra Club official, she has been a strong advocate of "smart growth," which promotes higher density subdivisions that preserve more open space and allow people to walk to services instead of using their cars. Better public transportation is another goal.
"I've just been in the learning process for seven years," said McGarvey, who decided to continue her campaign despite the death of her husband in June. "Not only to what the problems are but what the solutions are."
Robert Safarik believes he offers another kind of environmental expertise: a career spent helping companies improve their machines to emit less pollution. He says building desalination plants will help solve Florida's water shortages.
Florida's problems, he said, "don't require a political solution. It requires an engineered solution."
State House District 47 includes the northwest corner of Hillsborough County, including the communities of Northdale, parts of Carrollwood and parts of north Tampa. Representatives serve two-year terms and earn $29,328 per year.
JILL COLLINS, 31, is a marketing consultant who operates her own business, Linx Resources Inc. She serves on various boards, including as Gov. Jeb Bush's appointee to the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council. Single, she attended both Southeastern University and Eckerd College but did not graduate. ASSETS: business and house. LIABILITIES: mortgage. SOURCE OF INCOME: business.E-MAIL: linx@tampabay.rr.com WEB SITE: www.Jillcollins.com.
KEVIN AMBLER, 41, is a lawyer specializing in commercial and business litigation, personal injury and medical malpractice law. President of the Northdale Special Dependent Tax District for the past seven years, he served on the Hillsborough County Charter Review Board and is active in the Air Force Reserves, where he is a decorated major serving as a judge advocate. He has a bachelor's degree in economics from Cornell University and a law degree from Southwestern University School of Law. He is married with two children. ASSETS: law practice, home and stocks. LIABILITIES: mortgage and car loan. SOURCE OF INCOME: law practice. E-MAIL: Kevin@VoteAmbler.com WEB SITE: www.kambler@kevinambler.com.
WILLIAM MITCHELL, 55, is an employment lawyer. He is member of the development board of Suncoast Gerontology Center and the Tampa Bay Technical Forum, and serves as a legal adviser to the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay. A Navy veteran, he earned a degree in economics from the University of Washington, masters in economics and law from the University of California at Berkeley, and a masters in tax law at Georgetown. He is married with three children. ASSETS: business, home and stocks. LIABILITIES: none. SOURCE OF INCOME: law practice, book royalties, stocks. E-MAIL: mitchlaw@askmitch.net. WEB SITE: www.askmitch.net.
MICHAEL STEINBERG, 46, is a Social Security lawyer. He serves on the Florida Bar Association's military law subcommittee and volunteers in local schools. He received his bachelor's degree in economics and law degree from the University of Florida. He is married with three children. ASSETS: law practice and house. LIABILITIES: mortgage. SOURCE OF INCOME: law practice. E-MAIL: michael@steinberg2002.com WEB SITE: www.steinberg2002.com.
LYNN MCGARVEY, 67, is a community activist who serves as conservation co-chair of the Tampa Bay Sierra Club. She attended Sweet Briar College in Sweet Briar, Va., and obtained a bachelor's degree in business administration from Washington University in St. Louis, Mo. She is a widow with three children. ASSETS: house and stock. LIABILITIES: none. SOURCE OF INCOME: Social Security, stocks. E-MAIL: mcgarv@prodigy.net.
ROBERT SAFARIK, 56, is an engineer and businessman who owns American Controls and Instruments, which specializes in industrial equipment control systems. He received a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from Polytechnical University and a master's in mechanical engineering from Pennsylvania State University. He is divorced with three children. ASSETS: business, house, stocks and IRA. LIABILITIES: mortgages and credit card. SOURCE OF INCOME: business. E-MAIL: BobSafarik@shawus.com WEB SITE: www.acitampa.thomasregister.com/olc/acitampa/