Many left to pay to get names on ballot
By RICHARD DANIELSON
Published June 21, 2006
PETITION VICTORS: Noon Monday was the deadline for state Legislature candidates to qualify by petition, a process that involves getting the required number of voters' signatures in each contested district.
If the following list, provided by the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Office, is any clue, there are lots of hopefuls who will be forking over the $1,860 filing fee by July 21 to get their names on the ballot.
Those who met the petition requirements include Republican Tom Anderson in House District 45; Republican Brian Flaherty and Democrat Carl Zimmerman in House District 48; Republican Ed Hooper and Democrat Candi Jovan in House District 50; Republican Dottie Reeder in House District 51; Democrat Liz McCallum and Republican Ross Johnson in House District 52; Democrat Charles Gerdes in House District 53; and Republican Jim Frishe and Democrat Betsy Valentine in House District 54.
Democrat Chris Hrabovsky in House District 45 and Republican Kim Berfield in Senate District 16 also submitted petitions, but election officials said they were still reviewing the paperwork.
Of course, some politicos treat the petition process as a way to get face time with voters - planning all along to pay money to get on the ballot.
"It was always our intention to qualify via the fee," said Democrat Charlie Justice, who is campaigning for the Senate District 16 seat. "We had some wonderful conversations, and I'm grateful for all of the volunteers who went door to door."
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You, sir, are excused; you, ma'am, are not: With two out of five commissioners absent, the Safety Harbor City Commission's first order of business after the pledge of allegiance Monday night was to decide whether to excuse the missing commissioners, Mayor Pam Corbino and Commissioner James McCormick.
McCormick, who had to travel to the East Coast on business, was excused.
Then commissioners came to the mayor, who was not at last week's work session and sent an e-mail saying a back injury prevented her from making Monday's meeting.
Corbino, who could not be reached Tuesday, had not been at a commission meeting since the Times reported June 11 that Commissioner Kathleen Earle had accused her of trying to get Earle's Social Security number from a city employee. It's a charge that Corbino denied.
Vice Mayor Andy Steingold made a motion to excuse Corbino.
There was dead silence on the dais, but the audience laughed heartily.
With none of the commissioners supporting the motion, it failed. The absence would be unexcused.
Last week, after Earle's allegation became news, Corbino sent an e-mail to City Manager Wayne Logan saying she wouldn't be at a work session because she was on vacation.
Three hours before Monday's meeting, she wrote another e-mail to Logan saying she pulled something in her back "when I was painting a room at our home on Friday.
"My doctor put me on medication and there is just no way I can sit through a lengthy meeting," Corbino wrote. "I know in light of what is going on this doesn't look well, but there is nothing I can do about that. ... I also apologize for not calling, but my phone just keeps dropping calls unless I go out in the back yard and it's beginning to rain."
In a previous e-mail, Corbino said she did not ask for Earle's Social Security number but for her own. She asked for it, she said, because when she met with Gil Hernandez, who heads the city's auditing team, in May, questions came up about commissioners' personnel files and the information they contained.
On Monday night, Hernandez told commissioners that he did not say any such thing to Corbino.
"I wouldn't have had a reason to discuss that," he said. "I didn't even know if there were files on the commissioners."
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WADLINGER TO STEP DOWN EARLIER THAN PLANNED: Pinellas County Democratic Party chairwoman Carrie Wadlinger had planned to resign effective July 15. By party rules, a vote on her replacement would have taken place just before the Sept. 5 primaries.
Responding to calls from within the party and because of her wish to move on, Wadlinger has agreed to set a vote for July 25, which will allow the new leader more time to settle in as campaign season gets into high gear.
Some speculated that Wadlinger was having second thoughts and would announce plans to fight to keep the party's top spot. This week, she said those are just rumors.
"I have had a number of people ask me to reconsider, and that's a nice compliment," Wadlinger said. "But that's not something that I want to do. My time is up."
Those running for the post include party vice chairman Arlin Briley, Tom Steck, former St. Petersburg mayoral contender Ed Helm and Victor Jovan, husband of state House District 50 candidate Candi Jovan.
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FIREFIGHTERS ANNOUNCE FAVORITES: The Pinellas County Council of Fire Fighters has announced endorsements in the state legislative races. Picking up nods are Republican Ed Hooper in District 50, Republican Bruce Cotton in District 51, Democrat Liz McCallum in District 52, Democrat Rick Kriseman in District 53, Republican Rod Jones in District 54, Democrat Frank Peterman in District 55 and Republican Kim Berfield in District 16.
Unlike some endorsements that resonate little with voters, firefighter backing can be a genuine plus for a candidate.
"This endorsement means a lot to me," McCallum said. "Protecting our citizens' future is my top priority, and to know the firefighters are supporting my candidacy for the Florida House is wonderful."
It should be said that McCallum's Democratic opponent, Bill Heller, did attend the screening for the firefighters' endorsement in mid May, but he had not announced his candidacy at the time that the council made its selection.
In the House District 48 race, the council stood aside, and locals have endorsed their hometown favorites. The Safety Harbor local is going with Republican Robin Borland, Tarpon Springs with Republican Peter Nehr and Palm Harbor and Oldsmar with Republican Ken Peluso.
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GERDES NAMES CAMPAIGN MANAGER: House District 53 candidate Charles Gerdes has named 22-year-old Eric LaVenture his campaign manager. A St. Petersburg native, LaVenture graduated this year from the University of North Florida with a degree in political science.
Times staff writers Eileen Schulte, Leonora LaPeter, Adam C. Smith and Will Van Sant contributed to this week's Political Junkie. Contact the staff at politicaljunkie@sp times.com.