1971 Tampa mayoral election

1971 Tampa mayoral election

←  1967 September 14, 1971 1974 (special)  →

Candidate Dick A. Greco Nick Nuccio Party Nonpartisan Nonpartisan Popular vote 32,169 13,909 Percentage 66.10% 28.58%

Mayor before election Dick A. Greco Nonpartisan Elected mayor Dick A. Greco Nonpartisan

The 1971 Tampa mayoral election took place on September 14, 1971. Incumbent Mayor Dick A. Greco ran for re-election to a second term. He was challenged by former Mayor Nick Nuccio, whom he defeated in 1967. Greco defeated Nuccio in a landslide, winning 66 percent of the vote and avoiding the need for a runoff election. In the process, he became the first Mayor of Tampa to be re-elected since 1955. However, Greco did not end up serving his full term as mayor. He resigned from office in 1974, triggering a special election later that year.

Candidates

• Dick A. Greco, incumbent Mayor ^[1]
• Nick Nuccio, former Mayor ^[2]
• Armando P. Valdes, Jr., jeweler, 1967 City Council candidate ^[3]
• Sam Capitano, tile-setter ^[4]

Results

1971 Tampa mayoral election ^[5]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Dick A. Greco (inc.)	32,169	66.10%
	Nonpartisan	Nick Nuccio	13,909	28.58%
	Nonpartisan	Armando P. Valdes, Jr.	1,848	3.80%
	Nonpartisan	Sam Capitano	740	1.52%
Total votes			48,666	100.00%

References

1. Inglis, Tom (August 27, 1971). "Greco cites his record in seeking 2nd term". Tampa Times . Tampa, Florida. p. 4A. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
2. Toner, Jim (August 14, 1971). "Political Warhouse Nuccio Bids For Mayoral Comeback". The Tampa Tribune . Tampa, Florida. p. 1B. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
3. "City mayoral race gets candidate". Tampa Times . Tampa, Florida. August 3, 1971. p. 13A. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
4. Inglis, Tom (August 19, 1971). "Tampa's not 'what it used to be'". Tampa Times . Tampa, Florida. p. 17A. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
5. "First Primary - 9/14/1971". Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections. Archived from the original on December 1, 2010. Retrieved July 6, 2025.