1979 Tampa mayoral election

1979 Tampa mayoral election

←  1975 September 4, 1979 1983  →

Candidate Bob Martinez Bob Bondi Charles Miranda Party Nonpartisan Nonpartisan Nonpartisan Popular vote 25,777 11,985 3,329 Percentage 57.53% 26.75% 7.43%

Mayor before election Bill Poe Nonpartisan Elected mayor Bob Martinez Nonpartisan

The 1979 Tampa mayoral election was held on September 4, 1979. Incumbent Mayor Bill Poe declined to seek re-election. County Commissioner Bob Bondi; Bob Martinez, a 1974 candidate for mayor; and City Councilmember Charles Miranda announced that they would run to succeed Poe. Martinez ended up winning the election by a wide margin, receiving 58 percent of the vote to Bondi's 27 percent and Miranda's 7 percent, avoiding the need for a runoff election.

Candidates

• Bob Martinez, restaurateur, former Executive Director of the Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association, 1974 candidate for mayor ^[1]
• Bob Bondi, former Hillsborough County Commissioner ^[2]
• Charles Miranda, City Councilmember ^[3]
• Steve Divona, electrical contractor ^[4]
• Cy Warner, restaurateur ^[5]

Results

1979 Tampa mayoral election ^[6]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Bob Martinez	25,777	57.53%
	Nonpartisan	Bob Bondi	11,985	26.75%
	Nonpartisan	Charles Miranda	3,329	7.43%
	Nonpartisan	Steve Divona	1,895	4.23%
	Nonpartisan	Cy Warner	1,820	4.06%
Total votes			44,806	100.00%

References

1. Walker, Jim (September 23, 1978). "Martinez Candidate For Mayor". The Tampa Tribune . Tampa, Florida. p. 1A. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
2. "Bob Bondi Files Papers In Mayor Race". The Tampa Tribune . Tampa, Florida. May 17, 1978. p. 1A. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
3. "Miranda Yields Council Seat To Run For Mayor". The Tampa Tribune . Tampa, Florida. May 9, 1979. p. 2B. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
4. Greene, Jack (January 15, 1979). "Candidates For Mayor Are Sparse". The Tampa Tribune . Tampa, Florida. p. 1B. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
5. "Restaurateur Announces Candidacy In Mayor Race". The Tampa Tribune . Tampa, Florida. April 20, 1979. p. 2B. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
6. "Election of 9/4/1979". Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections. Archived from the original on December 1, 2010. Retrieved July 5, 2025.