There are five candidates running for St. Pete City Council District 7. A drive around one of the most dominant voting centers in that district, Midtown, reveals an overwhelming majority of yard signs for three of the candidates.
Those are Will Newton, Lisa Wheeler-Brown and Sheila Scott-Griffin. When Newton first announced he was entering the race – about six months after Wheeler-Brown did – he was widely expected to be her main competition.
But a poll conducted in late July shows Newton well ahead of the pack of five candidates with Scott-Griffin polling just behind him. The presence of yard signs seems to echo those numbers.
Scott-Griffin has raised just a fraction of what Newton and Wheeler-Brown have brought in. With under $8,000 in total contributions it’s a show of true grassroots power that she is going toe to toe with Newton, who raised more than $26,000 and Wheeler-Brown who raised $33,000.
On some blocks Scott-Griffin’s signs out-number Newton and Wheeler-Brown’s by 3-1.
That may not be much of an indicator for Newton, who lives in Childs Park and may enjoy a large percentage of the vote in his neighborhood, but Wheeler-Brown lives in Midtown.
Wheeler-Brown said she’s just focused on the positive and is out there to win.
And Newton’s campaign isn’t worried about the yard signs either.
“Signs don’t vote,” said City Council member Wengay Newton, Will’s brother.
Newton was lingering at the Thomas “Jet” Jackson Recreation Center, formerly known as Wildwood, Election Day morning scoping out the polls. He wasn’t surprised to see a slow turnout and said for Election Day, it’s all about turning people out to the polls.
According to his campaign, Will Newton is spending a good bit of the day on the phones making calls to last minute voters.
Newton has earned support from numerous firefighter groups through generous campaign contributions. He’s endorsed by local firefighters and the Police Benevolent Association as well as council members Wengay Newton, Amy Foster and Steve Kornell.
Newton served the City of St. Pete as a firefighter and EMT for 23 years. He’s expected to make his rounds at polling places when volume peaks after business hours between 5 and 7 this evening.
Polls close at 7. So far nearly 2,000 voters have cast a mail ballot. Turnout at the polls as of noon was 0.84 percent bringing total voter participation to 11.88 percent.
