Former state Rep. Jim Frishe is officially in the race for Pinellas County property appraiser. Frishe filed paperwork to run with the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections last week.
“One of my neighbors who works at the office told me that Pam was not seeking re-election and that nobody on the senior staff wanted it and he said I should think about it because he thought I’d do a good job,” Frishe said about his decision to run.
Frishe seeks to replace current Property Appraiser Pam Dubov, who announced last year that she will not seek re-election in 2016. Dubov, who has served since 2008 and likely would have cruised to re-election, is leaving the more than $150,000 a year job to become an ordained deacon in the United Methodist Church.
So far, no one else has filed to run for her seat.
One of the people Frishe first spoke with before making his decision was Dubov. He said she told him he needed to ensure he was a viable candidate by taking some courses in property appraisal.
Many of the courses Frishe would like to take aren’t offered to people outside the office, but he was able to take some courses through the department of revenue to hone his skills.
The courses are spread over five eight-hour days complete with homework and an exam. So Frishe has literally done his homework.
Frishe said he expects it to be a crowded primary, but is up for the job. His filing comes way ahead of schedule.
“I had some checks rolling in and you can’t do much with them without an account, so I filed,” he said.
Frishe notes that while he has filed papers with the elections office, he won’t be making an official campaign announcement until sometime this fall or even after the first of the year.
Frishe served in the Florida Legislature from 1984-90 and then returned again in 2006. In 2012 he was defeated by state Sen. Jeff Brandes in a contentious Republican Primary for the Senate seat that covers St. Petersburg and parts of Tampa.
The Tampa Bay Times endorsed Frishe in that race, though not necessarily with a glowing review. It seems the Times pegged Frishe as its top pick not because it was impressed with his job performance, but because he was the lesser of two evils.
They painted Brandes as the Tea Party favorite and Frishe as the more moderate choice who would slow privatization efforts and be more transit-friendly, but called his service in the Legislature “unremarkable.”
While no campaign finance documents have been filed yet, Frishe is likely to get a lot of conservative backing to replace the liberal Pam Dubov.
Frishe has tapped accountant Thomas Kiernan as his campaign treasurer, according to documents filed. Kiernan also works on successful campaigns for Reps. Kathleen Peters, Chris Latvala and Larry Ahern.
Frishe was originally born in New York. He graduated with his undergraduate degree from the University of Florida in 1971.
