Meet the Candidates: Find detailed information on the hopefuls, including their unedited responses to questions from the St. Petersburg Times editorial board. Search database Return to Special Report BLOG: The Buzz The latest in the world of Florida politics. Read and react
Both of the Democrats vying to replace retiring Rep. Charlie Justice in the state House are lawyers.
They agree on such key issues as education and property insurance. They describe themselves as fiscal conservatives and think the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test should be used differently in schools.
The similarities end there.
St. Petersburg City Council member Rick Kriseman views himself as a moderate who is "socially liberal."
Commercial litigator Charlie Gerdes said he's a traditional Democrat who is a "social conservative."
Without any debates, the two candidates have remained tactful in interviews when trying to distinguish themselves on experience.
There, they differ greatly.
Kriseman, 44, talks of his five years on the City Council, saying it is important to have elected officials in Tallahassee who have been "successful in getting things done."
"That's something I have to offer, and he doesn't have that experience," he said, referring to Gerdes.
Gerdes, 49, stresses his leadership ability, pointing to his years as a manager with the defense contractor E-Systems Inc. in St. Petersburg.
"Political experience may detract from leadership skills," he said. "You may be less willing to take a position of principle and stick with it."
The candidates agree education is a top priority.
Kriseman wants good teachers to have higher pay, and wants to reduce the student-teacher ratio.
He also wants to require community service for all public high school graduates.
"The kids most at risk are missing out on learning how to give back," Kriseman said.
Better pay for teachers also tops Gerdes' list. And he wants smaller classrooms.
But he also wants to end all voucher programs.
"It drains money from public schools," he said.
Both candidates view property insurance as a priority. But their ideas about what to improve differ.
Kriseman is interested in considering allowing the Save Our Homes cap to move with families and extend to property that serves as residential rental property.
Gerdes suggests a state-run insurance program for wind damage, "similar to what the national government has done for floods."
The winner faces Republican Thomas Piccolo, a recent University of South Florida St. Petersburg graduate who had no opposition in the primary.
THE JOB
District 53 covers north central St. Petersburg (see map, Page 8). Representatives serve two-year terms and earn $30,996 per year.
THE CANDIDATES
RICHARD KRISEMAN, 43, was born in Detroit and raised in St. Petersburg. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of Florida in 1984 and a law degree from Stetson University in Gulfport in 1987. He was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1987 and the U.S. Middle District Court and U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in 1988. Before opening his own law practice in 1993 in St. Petersburg, Kriseman was a lawyer with the firms Englander & Fischer, P.A., and Stolba, Englander & Shames, P.A. He was appointed to the St. Petersburg City Council in 2000 to fill a vacancy and won elections in 2001 and 2003. His resignation becomes official Nov. 6 to run for the state House. He is married to Kerry Kriseman, a St. Petersburg native who worked for the Times Publishing Co. for nine years before retiring to stay at home with their two children. They reside in St. Petersburg.
CHARLIE GERDES, 49, was born in Bristol, Tenn., and raised in St. Petersburg. He received his bachelor's degree from Florida State University in 1978 and a law degree from St. Thomas University in Miami in 1999. He was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2000 and the U.S. Middle District Court in 2003 and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in 2003. Before attending law school, he worked for 19 years for the defense contractor E-Systems in St. Petersburg, which today is Raytheon. He is married to Louanne Gerdes, a teacher at Holy Family Catholic School in St. Petersburg and Sacred Heart Parochial School in Pinellas Park. They live in St. Petersburg with their four children.
