State Senate, Dist. 13: Jones is headed back to capital

Dennis L. Jones, who spent 22 years in the Florida House of Representatives, won a different job on Tuesday: state senator.

"We've campaigned hard for a year and we've had really a grass-roots, bipartisan campaign from the beginning," Jones said.

He said his election shows "there's something that can be said for sending experience back to the Legislature, and that's something I campaigned on."

Jones, a Republican, defeated Democrat Joanna Kennedy in Senate District 13, which includes parts of St. Petersburg, Seminole, Largo, Clearwater, Dunedin and the beach communities.

Kennedy said she and her volunteers had run "an excellent, excellent campaign, super-squeaky clean, and I'm very proud of it."

Jones was forced out of the Legislature in 2000 by term limits, but almost immediately began planning and fundraising for a Senate race. With a great advantage in finances, he advertised extensively and reminded voters of his past legislative service.

He had campaigned on his experience, pointing to his success in obtaining beach renourishment funding. He also stressed moderate views, such as his willingness to consider increasing revenue for schools and his opposition to vouchers.

Kennedy, however, had pointed out that Jones had voted against vouchers in the House. She said she had a better plan for increasing teachers' pay.

Kennedy is a two-term commissioner from Indian Rocks Beach, who under state law had to agree to resign as commissioner to run for the Senate seat. She owns the Cookie Cutter hair salon in that city. Jones is a chiropractor.