The daily community edition of the St. Petersburg Times (in my instance, the North Pinellas Times) highlighted the fact Gus Bilirakis has five people who wish to unseat him as the representative of Florida's 9th congressional district (taking up a good swath of the Tampa Bay metro area for those nationally who do not know where the heck FL-09 is).
UPDATE here's a map:
Four Democrats, one Independent (of the principled loonie-right-but-non-Republican variety) and short profiles on each are featured in this article in question. Short, disappointing profiles that don't address much, but at elast serve as an introduction to local congressional candidates for the seat.
Bilirakis - a toady riding his fathers name into office in 2006 -- has over a half million dollars in his coffers for his re-election campaign... But can that overcome his growing reputation as being a rubber stamp vote?
I've highlighted the most well funded opponent that is currently in the field: former Plant City mayor John Dicks.. I've also made mention of new entrant Anita De Palma... The other two Democrats in the field are Michae4l Van Hoek and Bill Mitchell --
From the article:
Bill Mitchell
Mitchell said his memories of the day he left for the military during the Vietnam war prompted him to run for office.
"On the day I got on the airplane I saw the tears streaming down my dad's face," said Mitchell, an attorney from Carrollwood. "I learned that the war decision is a very serious decision."
Mitchell, 60, a Democrat, is on the board of the Tampa chapter of the Military Officers Association of America. He said being around soldiers recuperating from severe injuries has helped shape his perspective on the war.
"To me it's just wrong to have these kids fighting and dying in Iraq in pursuit of unattainable goals," said Mitchell.
Michael van Hoek
Van Hoek insists he is no politician. He is an emergency medical services administrator who has taught high school, community college and vocational classes.
"I think the voice of the people is best served by someone who is a common person," said van Hoek, 49, of Valrico. "I'm very much in tune with the difficulties everyday people face."
Van Hoek, a Democrat, said he would promote alternative energy sources.
"I stand opposed to drilling for exploration of oil in the Gulf and the Everglades," he said. "I think we are going to be better served by embarking in new technology."
And of course, as I stated in the early half of this diary entry -- there is a token independent in this race... The Term Limit Party candidate Richard O. Emmons who believes in Bush and... you tuessed it! Congressional term limits.
But who to back for Democrats? Who stands out in this field? I sit here and haven't exactly been won over by anyone as of yet and I'd love to get involved. This is my congressional district after all.
In 2006 it went by default to former Hillsborough County Commissioner Phyllis Busansky and Bilirakis won on his name alone. Will we see a repeat down the road or will someone wow the activists and netroots enough to make a play for this district?
All the candidates seem unified in something though:
They share the view that Bilirakis is a "nice man" but has not done a good job.
"Unfortunately, he has not been deemed to be an effective member of Congress," said John Dicks, the former mayor of Plant City, who has announced his plan to run for the seat.
Last year's "power rankings" released by the non-partisan Congress.org placed Bilirakis 438 of 439 members. The annual rankings use several criteria to measure power and effectiveness.