Kyc: District 57 State House

In a local version of the governor's race, the battle to replace state Rep. Chris Hart may hinge on whether voters trust Democrats or Republicans to fix public schools.

Both Republican Faye Culp and Democrat Scott Farrell say education is issue No. 1. Both say increasing teacher pay is the top goal.

But if voters don't like either candidate, they have another option: Libertarian Tyson Richmond. He opposes funding public schools, period.

The District 57 race pits a veteran politician attempting a comeback against a newcomer whose mantra is change and a third-party candidate who isn't campaigning. The backdrop is a district equally divided between Democrats and Republicans.

Culp is the veteran. She held the seat between 1994 and 1998 but stepped down to run unsuccessfully for state education commissioner. She says past experience will allow her to hit the ground running in Tallahassee.

"I know the system," she said.

Farrell is the upstart. He moved to Tampa five years ago after finishing law school. His spin: Tallahassee needs new blood.

"The past Legislature is to blame for what's going on today," he said.

Both candidates oppose the constitutional amendment on the ballot to reduce class size, but for different reasons.

Good idea, wrong vehicle, Farrell said. Those kinds of initiatives don't belong in the state Constitution, he said. It's the Legislature that needs to step up.

Culp, a former teacher and Hillsborough County School Board member, said smaller class sizes aren't a cure-all. Recruiting better teachers will achieve better results, she said. And if the amendment passes, it will force bigs cuts in other programs.

Beyond education, Culp wants computers in foster homes to improve communication with state officials. She promises to push for creation of volunteer support teams at every nursing home.

Farrell wants to make health care more affordable for small businesses. He stresses diversifying the state's economy and protecting children and seniors, whom he calls the state's "most vulnerable."

Richmond is part of a wave of Libertarians on this fall's ballot. He said he's running to generate publicity for the party, which advocates drastically smaller government and less regulation.

In a League of Women Voters debate, he said legalizing marijuana for medical purposes tops his list of issues.

He is not actively campaigning.

THE JOB

State House District 57 represents citizens in South Tampa, Upper Tampa Bay and Westchase. House members serve two-year terms and earn $29,328 a year.

REPUBLICAN

Culp

FAYE CULP, 62, represented the district in the Florida House between 1994 and 1998 before leaving to run unsuccessfully for Florida Commissioner of Education. She also ran for a Florida Senate seat in 2000 and lost in the Republican primary. She is retired and working toward a doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Sarasota. Before serving in the Legislature, she sat on the Hillsborough School Board from 1988 to 1992. She has worked as a teacher in Atlanta and as a real estate broker in Tampa. Born in Mississippi, she earned a bachelor's degree in business education from Mississippi University for Women and a master's degree in art education from the University of South Florida. Culp is married and has two adult sons. ASSETS: home, beach condominium, insurance, IRA, investment LIABILITIES: mortgage SOURCE OF INCOME: Social Security, state pension WEB SITE: www.fayeculp.com

DEMOCRAT

Farrell

SCOTT FARRELL, 35, worked as a lawyer at the Tampa firm of Foley and Lardner until he left in April 2002 to run for the state House. Before joining the firm in 1999, Farrell worked at the firm of Shear, Newman, Hahn and Rosenkranz in Tampa. Since 1998, Farrell has served as a nonphysician patient advocate on the Institutional Review Board at the University of South Florida, a voluntary position that protects the rights of patients who participate in medical trials at USF. Farrell has also served on the board of the Tampa Guardian Ad-Litem Guild and volunteered for the Junior Achievement program in the public schools. Born in Washington, Farrell was raised in upstate New York. He earned a bachelor's degree from the State University of New York at Brockport. He earned a master's degree in 1994 from the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications and received a law degree from UF in 1997. He is single. ASSETS: bank account LIABILITIES: student loans, car loan SOURCE OF INCOME: law firm salary WEB SITE: www.votefarrell.com

LIBERTARIAN

Richmond

TYSON RICHMOND, 42, is a real estate investor and retired computer consultant. He was born in Atlanta and grew up in South Tampa. He worked for 17 years as a computer analyst at GTE. He graduated from Boston University in 1982 with a bachelor's degree in psychology. In August, he was appointed to a three-year term on the City of Tampa Code Enforcement Board. He is divorced and has a 16-year-old daughter. ASSETS: condominium home, ranch, stocks, real estate, IRA LIABILITIES: none SOURCE OF INCOME: stock dividends, land sales WEB SITE: www.lpf.org