With nearly all precincts reporting for Tampa's election March 1, it appeared that Carrie West's hopes for a seat on the city council were dashed.
As of press time, West had about 18% of the vote after most of the precincts reported and Frank Reddick had nearly 52% of the votes. If the totals are confirmed, that means Reddick will serve District 5 and no run-off will be held March 22.
The same can't be said for the Mayoral race. At press time, Rose Ferlita was narrowly leading Bob Buckhorn 25.8% to 24% in a statistical tie. If those numbers are confirmed, Ferlita and Buckhorn will move forward to the run-off March 22. Former mayor Dick Greco garnered just under 23% of the vote and Ed Turanchik tallied 19%. Thomas Scott trailed with less than 9% of the votes in his favor.
Before the election, the outspoken community leader and activist said that the March 1 election was a historical one for Tampaâ┚¬â€Âmostly because it was the first time that the entire City Council was up for grabs.
â┚¬Å”Right now we have a situation where we're in turmoil,â┚¬Â West said. â┚¬Å”The City Council isn't cohesive, and they are not asserting their power under the mayor. Pam [Iorio] has done a great job, but I think we've been misled by a council member or two.â┚¬ÂÂ
West had a large backing from the Ybor City area, thanks to his involvement in founding the GaYbor District Coalition and the name recognition associated with MC Film Fest, the store him and his partner, Mark Bias, run on 15th Street and 8th Avenue. Throughout the months-long race, volunteers from within and outside the coalition sported green â┚¬Å”Go Westâ┚¬Â campaign shirts, signs and buttons.
While it is well known that West is gay, he said he never ran into any opposition because of his sexuality while campaigning.
â┚¬Å”Only one person has ever brought up my sexuality,â┚¬Â said West, who said he made it a point to knock on at least 400 homes per week during his campaign. â┚¬Å”People are far more interested in the issues. Everyone benefits from a good infrastructure, and that's what has my attention. I want to represent everyone in the district, not just one segment.â┚¬ÂÂ
This was West's second bid for public office in Tampa. He ran unsuccessfully for the Tampa City Council in 1998.
Besides Reddick, it appeared as though the only other two candidates avoiding the run-off election were City Council District 2's Mary Mulhern, who was leading with nearly 52% of the votes at press time, and District 6's Charlie Miranda, with a hefty 63% to 38% lead over Kelly Benjamin.
Early results pertaining to District 1 seemed to place Mike Suarez with a narrow lead over Curtis Stokes and the District 3 race was a toss up between Yvonne Capin and Chris Hart, both of whom had less than 30% of the votes.
In District 4, Harry Cohen was just shy of 45% and will now face Julie Jenkins for that seat on March 22.
Lisa Montelione and Charles Perkins were the top finishers in District 7 and will now face off later this month.
