Pinellas County is a county located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 959,107. It is the most densely populated county in Florida. The county is part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Clearwater is the county seat. St. Petersburg is the largest city as well as the largest city in Florida that is not a county seat.
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the largest city in the state that is not a county seat. Along with Clearwater, these cities are part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area, the second-largest in Florida with a population of around 2.8 million. St. Petersburg is on the Pinellas peninsula between Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, and is connected to mainland Florida to the north.
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, west of Tampa and North of St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 117,292. Clearwater is the county seat of Pinellas County and is the smallest of the three principal cities in the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater metropolitan area, most commonly referred to as the Tampa Bay Area.
Gulfport is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, bordering St. Petersburg, South Pasadena, and Boca Ciega Bay. The population of Gulfport was 12,029 at the 2010 census. Gulfport is part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater metropolitan statistical area.
Largo is the third largest city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, as well as the fourth largest in the Tampa Bay area. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 82,500, up from 69,371 in 2000.
Pinellas Park is a city located in central Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The population was 53,093 at the 2020 census. Originally home to northern transplants and vacationers, the hundred year old city has grown into the fourth largest city in Pinellas County, the most densely-populated county in Florida. The city and surrounding areas are almost completely urbanized. Pinellas Park contains a substantial portion of the Gateway area of the county, targeted for future infrastructure, residential, and commercial development as it sits roughly in the middle of the Tampa Bay area's over two million people. Though land-locked, its borders lie only a few miles from Tampa Bay to the east, and Boca Ciega Bay and the Gulf of Mexico to the west. The city is known for its popular equestrian facilities and events, and many residents also participate in fishing and water activities in nearby venues.
The Pinellas Bayway System is a series of bridges on two state roads in Pinellas County, Florida. It is a toll road complex maintained and operated by the Florida Department of Transportation. It also is compatible with the SunPass ETC system currently in use on all other FDOT-owned toll roads. The Pinellas Bayway consists of:
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Patricia "Pat" Gerard is a Democratic politician and the first female mayor for the city of Largo, Florida. Gerard was born in Paterson, New Jersey. She is married and has one child, writer Sarah Gerard.
Richard David Kriseman is an American politician who served as the 53rd Mayor of St. Petersburg from 2014 to 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives, representing the 53rd district from 2006 to 2012.
John Stansel Taylor (1871-1936) was a Largo, Florida politician, citrus grower, and businessman who served as the first State Senator from Pinellas County, Florida. He was born "six miles south of Largo" on March 21, 1871, before Largo became a municipality and when Pinellas County was still Western Hillsborough County. Taylor’s parents were among the Pinellas Peninsula's first pioneers, and he was one of the first residents to be born in the Largo area. He was one of four members of his family to serve in the State Legislature. He was one of the largest landowners in Pinellas County, owning citrus groves and a packing plant at a time when Largo was nicknamed "Citrus City." Taylor was President of the Florida Citrus Exchange and a Member of the State Citrus Commission. He has been called "the father of Pinellas County." He died in 1936. Taylor Lake Park, a Pinellas County park, was named in his honor.
Janet C. Long is a Democratic politician and educator who serves as a member of the Florida House of Representatives for House District 51. She was a member of the Seminole, Florida City Council from 2002 to 2006. She was first elected to the Florida Legislature in 2006, and was re-elected in 2008.
Darryl Ervin Rouson is a Democratic member of the Florida Senate who has represented the 16th district, which includes parts of Pinellas and Hillsborough Counties from downtown St. Petersburg to downtown Tampa, since 2016. He previously served four terms in the Florida House of Representatives from 2008 to 2016.
David William Foster is an American attorney and former mayor of St. Petersburg, Florida. He was elected in 2009. Before being elected mayor Foster served on the city council and worked as a lawyer.
St. Petersburg, Florida, held an election for mayor on August 27 and November 5, 2013. A non-partisan primary election was held on August 27, 2013. No candidate won a majority of the vote, so the top two finishers, incumbent Mayor Bill Foster and former State Representative Rick Kriseman, advanced to a runoff.
A special election for Florida's 13th congressional district was held March 11, 2014, to elect a member of the United States House of Representatives, following the death of incumbent Republican Congressman Bill Young on October 18, 2013. Primary elections were held on January 14, 2014. Young, who had already announced that he would not be running for re-election in 2014, was re-elected in 2012 with 57 percent of the vote. With 100% of the precincts reporting, David Jolly was declared the winner of the special election.
St. Petersburg, Florida, held an election for mayor on February 27 and March 27, 2001. A non-partisan primary election was first held on February 27. No candidate won a majority of the vote, so the top two finisher advanced to a runoff.
St. Petersburg, Florida, held an election for mayor on September 1 and November 3, 2009. A non-partisan primary election was first held on September 1. No candidate won a majority of the vote, so the top two finisher advanced to a runoff. It saw the election of Bill Foster.
St. Petersburg, Florida, held an election for mayor on August 24, 2021. Incumbent Democratic mayor Rick Kriseman was term-limited and could not seek re-election to a third term in office. Municipal elections in St. Petersburg are officially nonpartisan. All candidates appeared on the same primary ballot, and because no candidate garnered at least 50% of the vote, the top two vote-getters advanced to a runoff election on November 2, 2021. Former Pinellas County commissioner Ken Welch easily defeated city councillor Robert Blackmon in the runoff and became the first black mayor of St. Petersburg.
Kenneth T. Welch is an American politician serving as mayor of St. Petersburg, Florida. A member of the Democratic Party, Welch served on the county commission of Pinellas County, Florida. Welch is the city's first African-American mayor.
