Kyc: District 45 State House

Voters in state House of Representatives District 45, split between Pinellas and Pasco counties, will choose among two candidates who live in the same county and one who doesn't live in the district.

Republican Tom Anderson and Democrat Kevin Jensen live in Pinellas County, though both say that won't matter if they get the job representing the district. Libertarian John Doherty lives in the Pasco portion of Spring Hill and would have to move into the district if he pulls off a huge electoral upset.

Anderson already has been campaigning longer than the other two candidates, having defeated Pasco resident John Legg in the September primary. And Anderson has raised three times the money Jensen has.

Anderson was twice elected to the Dunedin City Commission and three times elected mayor of the city. The retired management consultant lists cutting taxes by 25 percent while building a new library and fire station among his achievements. Anderson's ideas for office are often colored by his business background: increasing efficiency to save money and adding a more powerful auditing agency for the Legislature to study departments, to name two.

Jensen is running for office for the first time. He said his candidacy is "grass roots," relying on volunteers and not a lot of money to get his name before voters.

Jensen's issues often come from the work he has done: education funding, smaller classes in schools, better teacher pay. He also advocates reducing the importance of the FCAT tests in schools, a prescription drug program for seniors and protecting the environment.

"My experiences are with people, one on one," Jensen said. "All my experience has been nuts and bolts."

Doherty, who filed to run after the state Libertarian Party asked him to via e-mail, said he was part of the party's effort to get Libertarian candidates on all ballots. Doherty said he never has run for public office, although he had considered it for years.

With little evidence of Doherty's campaign -- state records show he has neither raised money nor reported any spent -- his effort is a long shot.

"I'm running to roll back the role of government out of everyone's life and keep to a minimum what it should be," Doherty said in May when he filed to run. "We don't need government micromanaging people's lives."

THE JOB

District 45 stretches from Dunedin up the coastal areas of north Pinellas and into Pasco, covering most of Holiday and the eastern unincorporated areas of New Port Richey. State representatives serve two-year terms and make $29,328 a year.

REPUBLICAN

Anderson

TOM ANDERSON, 70, is mayor of Dunedin. Born in New York, Anderson got his master's of business administration from George Washington University in 1970 and worked for the federal government for 25 years before moving to Florida. Before he retired in 1992, he worked as a management consultant. He was elected to the Dunedin City Commission twice and has served three terms as mayor. Anderson lists community service work with the Downtown Dunedin Community Redevelopment Agency, the Pasco-Pinellas Area Agency on Aging, the Rotary Club of Dunedin and the Pinellas County Sheriff's Advisory Board among others. He is married. ASSETS: several properties, investments, bonds LIABILITIES: loan SOURCE OF INCOME: mayor salary, investment income, rental income

DEMOCRAT

Jensen

KEVIN JENSEN, 44, is a teacher at St. Petersburg College in Clearwater. Born near Baltimore, Jensen got his bachelor's and master's degrees from Towson State University. He teaches two classes at St. Petersburg College in Clearwater, and has held a variety of teaching and training jobs. He was an instructor for the American Red Cross and served as a training officer and spokesman for Palm Harbor Fire Rescue. He has also worked as an emergency medical technician for Med Fleet ambulance service. He is married. ASSETS: home, investments LIABILITIES: loan, mortgage SOURCE OF INCOME: teaching salary WEB SITE: voteforjensen.com/ E-MAIL: voteforjensen@yahoo.com

LIBERTARIAN

Doherty

JOHN DOHERTY, 47, a native of Connecticut, was schooled in electronics in the Navy from 1983 to 1989. After that he worked in Connecticut, Europe and then in Key West with a series of companies contracting with the Department of Defense to collect intelligence. Since December 1998, he has maintained and repaired computer and telecommunications equipment for General Dynamics on MacDill Air Force Base. He did not respond to a Times questionnaire about him and his platform. When he filed to run, he said he follows the Libertarian platform of less government and said he was an ardent opponent of gun regulations. ASSETS: land, home LIABILITIES: loans, mortgage SOURCE OF INCOME: salary E-MAIL: EoinRoe@aol.com