St. Pete gets a new mayor Jan. 7. Between now and then: a Gas Plant deal that isn't final, a ballclub that says it's gone, and questions about the money behind the winner.
By Joseph Jackson | ST. PETERSBURG (Nov. 9, 2026)
Disclosure: FMNN endorsed Ken Welch for mayor and Linsey Grove for City Council District 6.
The short version
Crist beat Mayor Ken Welch 64,036 to 39,221 (62% to 38%). He and new council members Gabriel Hament (District 2) and Linsey Grove (District 6) are sworn in Jan. 7.
Crist wants to reopen talks with the Rays and to re-evaluate Welch's Gas Plant pick. The Rays say they're committed to Tampa.
FMNN's investigation found that Crist's committee paid $946,617 to firms tied to Florida Politics publisher Peter Schorsch and his wife, the committee's chair.
Charlie Crist didn't just win. He won by 24 points, a bigger margin than his August primary, when he took 35% of the vote to Welch's 20.5%. He raised more than $2.75 million, a record for a St. Petersburg race. Welch, the city's first Black mayor, conceded on election night: "The voters have made a clear choice."
Those votes also leave a long list of open questions. Here's where each one stands.
The Trop and the Gas Plant
The 86-acre Tropicana Field site sits on the Historic Gas Plant District, the Black neighborhood razed for the ballpark. Welch made redeveloping it in a way that honors displaced families the center of his campaign, and he picked a developer, The Burg Bid. No deal is final. Crist said at the campaign's only televised debate that he would re-evaluate the proposals, Welch's pick included.
That leaves Welch about eight weeks. Axios Tampa Bay puts the question plainly: will he try to move his plan forward before he leaves? FMNN found no Gas Plant item on a City Council agenda before Jan. 7, and we're checking every week. (Our earlier story: Welch Has Until Jan. 7. Will His Gas Plant Pick Survive Crist?)
The Rays
Crist says St. Pete should keep pursuing the team until shovels are in the ground in Tampa. The team plans a $2.3 billion stadium and district at Hillsborough College's Dale Mabry campus, with about $796 million approved by Hillsborough County and $80 million by the City of Tampa. The Rays congratulated Crist, but the team said it is "committed to the city of Tampa." Crist has also suggested St. Pete could negotiate an extension at the Trop if construction in Tampa runs late.
City Hall's budget
Crist attacked the 262 positions added under Welch, calling it "a bloated government," and has promised a property-tax cut. Welch challenged him to say exactly what he'd cut to pay for it. We haven't seen that list yet. Crist has also pledged to reopen talks with Moffitt Cancer Center about a St. Pete project that fell apart under Welch.
Storms
Crist criticized Welch's handling of the recovery from hurricanes Helene and Milton. Drainage and sewer weaknesses those storms exposed are still unfinished business for the new administration.
The money behind the win
Florida Politics, one of the state's most-read political sites, disclosed in its own election coverage that Michelle Todd Schorsch chairs St. Pete Shines, the committee that backed Crist. She introduced him as "mayor-elect" on election night. Her husband, Peter Schorsch, publishes Florida Politics.
FMNN's investigation found that state records show Crist's committee paid her firm, her husband's company and her personally a total of $946,617, about 41 cents of every dollar it spent. We've asked Crist, Michelle Todd Schorsch and Peter Schorsch for comment by 5 p.m. Tuesday. Full story: The Schorsch Machine That Helped Elect Charlie Crist
What we're watching before Jan. 7
Crist's transition team and early appointments, including any Schorsch-linked firms
Any Gas Plant vote Welch tries to bring to council
Whether Crist names specific budget cuts behind his tax pledge
Any sign the Rays will talk
Related on FMNN
Sources
Bay News 9, Crist wins St. Petersburg mayor race, gets 62 percent of vote
WUSF, Charlie Crist can add a new title to his resume, Nov. 3, 2026
Axios Tampa Bay, St. Pete mayor: Former Gov. Charlie Crist defeats incumbent Ken Welch, Nov. 4, 2026
Florida Politics, Charlie Crist ousts Ken Welch to become St. Petersburg's next Mayor (includes the publication's disclosure)
Tampa Bay Times via Yahoo, Welch concedes to Crist in blowout St. Pete mayor's race
St Pete Catalyst, Crist beats Welch in St. Petersburg mayor's race
WFLA, Charlie Crist wants another shot at keeping Rays in St. Pete
WFLA Radio / iHeart, Mayor-Elect Charlie Crist Wants Tampa Bay Rays to Stay in St. Petersburg
Florida Phoenix, Charlie Crist wins the St. Petersburg mayoral race, Nov. 4, 2026
Photo: Tropicana Field from the air, by Opakapaka, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped.
