Primary 2020: 3 Democrats Vie For Pinellas County Commission Seat

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL — Democrats will have a chance to choose a candidate for the Pinellas County Commission District 7 seat during Tuesday's primary.

Incumbent Ken Welch is not seeking reelection. Instead, he said he will run for St. Petersburg mayor in 2021.

Pinellas County School Board member Rene Flowers, Florida Rep. Wengay "Newt" Newton and the Rev. Frank Peterman Jr. are vying for the seat. The winner will face Maria L. Scruggs, who has no party affiliation, and write-in-candidate Anthony Hart in the general election Nov. 3.

Rene Flowers

A graduate of Dixie Hollins High School, Rene Flowers holds an associate's degree from Tallahassee Community College, a bachelor's degree in organizational studies from Eckerd College, a master's degree in public administration from Capella University and a doctorate from Capella University.

She served as a health education and preventions specialist from 1986 to 1999 for the Community Health Centers of Pinellas Inc., was vice president of health education and prevention services from 2001-06 at the Coalition for a Safe and Drug-Free St. Petersburg Inc. and is currently the employee education and professional development manager at Gulf Coast Jewish Family and Community Services Inc.

She served as a St. Petersburg City Council member from 1998 to 2008 and has been a member of the Pinellas County School Board since 2012. She also served as vice president and president of the Florida League of Cities from 2004-06.

She said her priorities are affordable workforce housing, small minority- and women-owned businesses, transportation and the environment.

"As a lifelong resident, growing up in public housing and attending schools in Pinellas County during segregation, I know what it is like to have the odds stacked against you. I understand what it is like to own your own business and not receive the same support as a startup that persons of another race does. I know what it is like to have individuals assume that you are less than because of where you live. And I know what it is like to have medical needs with no insurance.

"I refuse to believe that we cannot provide essential services to residents in Pinellas County. I know I can do it because, when I called, you answered. Together, we have risen to the occasion. As a city council member, I worked on the HOPE VI project and added $3.2 million for infrastructure, built affordable housing by funding General Home Development and Habitat for Humanity and expanded voucher programs. Why? Because everyone deserves safe, clean and affordable housing.

"I served on the board for the PSTA and was successful in adding sola- powered bus stops for safety reasons and coverage from the elements, adding the bus hub on Central Avenue and expanding routes for persons with disabilities.

"As a school board member, I signed for $68 million dollars in bonds to build a new Melrose Elementary School (it had not been touched since 1947), rehab Lakewood High School, $36 million to rehab St. Pete High, hiring more minority teachers and revamping the way discipline is handled especially when addressing disparities in punishment.

"We also passed the referendum to increase teacher salaries and started teachers out at $40,000 a year when the state Legislature only provided a 47-cent increase.

"Finally, we will be faced with increased unemployment, a lack of health care, food insecurities not to mention those recovering from COVID-19. The person elected must have leadership skills as well as be open to creating and maintaining partnerships. I honestly believe that I am that person."

Wengay "Newt" Newton

"Born and raised in Midtown South St. Petersburg, the most impoverished area in Pinellas County, I was one of eight siblings raised by a single divorced mother. I learned early on the value of hard work and perseverance. My mother worked as a domestic, sewing, cooking, cleaning and rearing affluent people's children in Snell Isle and Shore Acres until her death in 1985.

"After graduating from Northeast High School in 1981, I attended the International Telephone and Telegraph (ITT) Technical Institute where I received an associate arts degree in electronics engineering in 1983. I also attended Hillsborough Community College and St. Petersburg College.

"In 1983, I started an 18-year career with Xerox Corp. as a senior printing systems engineer. There I met and married my soulmate, Melissa Newton. We have four children and seven grandchildren. This year we will celebrate 30 years of marital bliss."

Newton served on the St. Petersburg City Council from 2008-16 and then was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2016 where he continues serving.

"Real leadership is about self-sacrifice, commitment and genuinely caring about people. As a statesman, I believe in people, over the politicians. I want to continue being a champion that is visible and vocal on issues of importance for the people in District 7 and Pinellas County. I want to continue serving as your voice on the Pinellas County Commission, a voice that echoes your concerns, a voice that matters, a voice that cares."

Frank Peterman Jr.

A lifelong resident of the city of St. Petersburg, the Rev.Frank W. Peterman, Jr. completed his early childhood education in the Pinellas County school system, graduating from Lakewood High School in 1980.

He received his bachelor of arts degree in English in 1985 from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia and earned was accepted into the master's program at Dallas Theology Seminary.

In 2002, he became pastor of the Rock of Jesus Missionary Baptist Church in St. Petersburg and, in 2017, he founded Peterman Global LLC., a consulting firm that provides representation and access for corporations, organizations and vendors directly affected by policies and decisions made at the legislative, executive and departmental levels of government.

He served as a Pinellas County Housing Authority commissioner, St. Petersburg City Council member, secretary of the Department of Juvenile Justice for the state of Florida and 3 1/2 terms as a state representative for District 55.

During Peterman’s tenure as legislator, he served as chairman, chaplain and parliamentarian for the Executive Committee of the Florida Conference of Black State Legislators.

He and his wife, June Kicklighter Peterman, have four children.

"My political career is rooted in Pinellas County. This county has shaped and molded me tremendously. I could not be more grateful. As your county commissioner, I will make every effort to give this city and district all that it has given to me. I look forward to leveraging my prior governmental experiences to provide District 7 access to opportunities that will uplift and empower our communities. We will all be made better. My platform highlights the key points that embody how we plan to get this done."

His priorities include the Pinellas County Small Business Enterprise Program, the allocation of dollars for the Convention Bureau, funding for early childhood care and youth summer jobs, affordable housing tax credit funding, financial empowerment through community partnerships and using surplus county property for workforce housing.

This article originally appeared on the Clearwater Patch