Janelle Irwin Taylor
St. Petersburg City Council member Gina Driscoll is serving her final two years in her current role as term limits approach, and her work from the dais is finally paying off with an honorable mention on this year’s list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians.
First elected in 2017, Driscoll has since served twice as Vice Chair of the City Council, in 2020 and 2021, and once as its Chair, in 2022.
She has proven popular in the city, winning both her first election and her re-election easily. In 2017, Driscoll earned more than 55% of the vote against then-opponent Justin Bean in the District 6 race to replace outgoing City Council candidate Karl Nurse, who had long represented the Southeast St. Pete-based district.
Her most recent election, in 2021, was even more of a blowout. Driscoll dominated with nearly 72% of the vote and proved her fundraising chops with more than $122,000 raised for a race that tends to be lower budget. Her opponent, Mhariel Summers, raised just over $14,000 by comparison.
Throughout her tenure, Driscoll has served as a political moderate, and sometimes as a swing vote. While City Council positions are nonpartisan, the board has historically been run by Democrats. Throughout most of Driscoll’s tenure, she was often an ally of the board’s only Republican, Ed Montanari, who has since been replaced by Mike Harting, himself a nonpartisan.
Driscoll’s reputation for serving with pragmatism and without regard to partisan political leanings has led to speculation that she has her eye on higher office, with some believing she may run for Mayor, whether against incumbent Ken Welch next year, or four years after when Welch, if re-elected, will reach his own term limits.
It’s rare for St. Pete City Council members to make the Florida Politics list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians, making Driscoll’s inclusion notable.
Last year, Montanari made the list at an impressive No. 16, but that likely was because his profile was high as he ran for the House against incumbent Democrat Lindsay Cross, a race he would go on to lose. No other member of the City Council was named that year. In 2023, City Council member Brandi Gabbard made the list, at No. 20. In 2022, not a single member of the board made the cut.
With Driscoll’s term not ending until January 2027, she’ll have another crack at the list next year. If she does jump into the Mayor’s race, she would likely have a higher profile as a result. That hypothetical would present an uphill challenge for Driscoll though, as she would be running against an incumbent who is serving as the city’s first Black Mayor.
Rumors have swirled that Driscoll — allied with Montanari and former City Council member Robert Blackmon, a Republican — may change her party affiliation from Democrat to Republican. While she has never confirmed such rumors, that would open other future political options for Driscoll as well, should she be eyeing them.
_____
A special thanks to RSA Consulting Group, the sponsor of this year’s rankings.
As for methodology, we define the Tampa Bay region as Pinellas, Hillsborough and Pasco, but we can also include Hernando, Polk or Sarasota if the politicians from those counties impact either Pinellas or Hillsborough.
We define a politician as being in office or running for office.
Being first on a panelist’s list earns the politician 25 points, second earns them 24 points, and so on, to where being listed 25th earns a politician one point. Points are added and, voilà, we have a list.
We also want to thank our experienced and knowledgeable panelists, who were essential to developing the 2025 list: Vinik Family Office Chief of Staff Christina Barker; Mercury Public Affairs Managing Director Ashley Bauman; Matt Blair of Corcoran Partners; Reggie Cardozo of The Public Square; Stephanie Cardozo of The Southern Group; Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick managing partner Ron Christaldi; former state Sen. Janet Cruz; political consultant/strategist Barry Edwards; Vicidial Group President Matt Florell; Sunrise Consulting Group President Shawn Foster; businessman Michael Griffin; Clay Hollis of Tucker/Hall; Natalie King of RSA Consulting Group; Moffitt Cancer Center VP of Public Affairs and Communications Merritt Martin; former state Rep. Seth McKeel of The Southern Group; political consultant Chris Mitchell; Mike Moore of The Southern Group; RSA President and CEO Ron Pierce; Tucker/Hall CEO Darren Richards; political consultant Jim Rimes; political consultant Preston Rudie of Catalyst Communications Group; TECO VP of State and Regional Affairs Stephanie Smith; lobbyist Alan Suskey of Shumaker Advisors; Doyle Walsh, Chief of Staff for St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch; Michelle and Peter Schorsch, publishers of Florida Politics.
