St. Pete City Council chair Charlie Gerdes is considered a shoe-in for re-election despite having drawn a last minute challenger prior to the qualifying deadline. Despite his assumed advantage, Gerdes only leads his opponent, Monica Abbott, by $100 in campaign contributions.
The lackluster campaign finance report shows Gerdes is likely not worried about being unseated.
Gerdes has raised just $1,100 as of the end of June and $600 of that came from his own checkbook. The St. Pete Association of Fire Fighters kicked in the other $500.
That contribution is ironic considering Gerdes has endorsed Aaron Sharpe for City Council District 7. One of Sharpe’s opponents is Will Newton, a retired fire fighter and union leader.
Gerdes has only forked over money for his qualifying fee so far. That amounts to just over $546.
Gerdes’ challenger has raised $1,000, however the reports available through the City Clerk filed by Abbott do not itemize where her contributions came from.
Abbott has spent the exact same amount on her campaign as Gerdes, implying she has also only paid for qualifying fees. But again, her Second Quarter report does not itemize expenditures.
A request was sent to the City Clerk asking for the missing itemized report and seeking clarification on whether Abbott filed a complete document. That query has not yet been answered. We’ll update this post when it is.
Gerdes will face Abbott at the ballot box in the General Election this November.
