Voters Say 'No' To Teacher Raises: Hillsborough Co. Election Results

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, FL — While it appears that Pasco County just to the north of Hillsborough County will get its one mil property tax increase for raises for teachers, Hillsborough County voters weren't quite as magnanimous.

Voters in Hillsborough County weren't inclined to give more money to the Hillsborough County School District district that was accused of mismanaging its budget last year, resulting in the Department of Education nearly taking over the district, which had a $107 million deficit.

Parents, in particular, were disgruntled with the school district over its mandatory mask mandates during the coronavirus pandemic and for laying off teachers to help it balance its budget at a time when the school district was already facing a teacher shortage.

Though the vote is too close to officially call, with 448 of 448 precincts reporting, 109,444 voters (or 50.22 percent) gave the millage increase a thumbs down while 108,492 (or 49.78) voted to approval the referendum.

Scroll down for real-time updates of election results. Refresh this page for updates.

The fourth most populous county in the state, Hillsborough has three congressional districts, all of which are up for grabs this year.

Republicans are hoping to wrangle the District 14 congressional seat, which includes part of north Pinellas and Hillsborough counties away from Democrats. However, with all 178 precincts reporting in Hillsborough, incumbent U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, received an overwhelming majority in the Democratic race against Christopher Bradley.

Castor unofficially received 40,092 votes or 90.53 percent to Bradley's 4,192 votes or 9.47 percent.

First elected in 2006 to the United States House of Representatives, and re-elected by voters in 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016. Castor is the first woman to be elected to U.S. Congress from Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.

During her years in Congress, she's brought home billions of dollars for Tampa Bay including the $12.6 million grant for Port Tampa Bay's expansion that was presented by U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Butgieg Tuesday.

An advocate of small businesses and middle class families, she's fought for tax cuts for the middle class, raising the minimum wage, improving access to health care and protecting the environment.

Castor will likely face Tampa Republican James Judge in the general election Nov. 8.

A well-known supporter of veterans and the military, Judge, who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom as a member of the U.S. Coast Guard, is the founder of Judge Public Relations in Tampa. He's well-known in the Tampa Bay area for being one of the founding members and spokesman for the popular Skyway 10K, which has raised more than $2 million for military families.

Judge garnered 15,075 votes while opponents Jerry Torres won 8,363 votes and Samar "Sam" Nashagh received 4,768 votes.

In the Republican battle to retain the staunchly Republican Congressional District 15 seat, which includes Brandon, Plant City, Lakeland and Bartow, state Rep. Jackie Toledo, R-Tampa, gambled on a promotion and lost.

With all 165 precincts in Hillsborough reporting, Toledo received only 4,428 votes in the district that's been traditionally held by Polk County Republicans.

However, current U.S. Rep. Kelli Stargel, R-Polk County, also failed to obtain a majority, receiving 8,091 votes.

Instead, the majority went to former Secretary of State under Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Laurel Lee. A former judge and prosecutor who is a strong supporter of law enforcement, she said she will stand up to anyone wanting to defund the police.

Others running for the seat were Demetries "Commander" Grimes who received 2,895 in Hillsborough County and Kevin "Mac" McGovern who received 14,450 votes.

In other races of interest, with 34 of 34 precincts reporting in Hillsborough County for the Florida House District 62 race, which includes St. Petersburg and part of Hillsborough County, Democratic voters chose state Rep. Michele K. Rayner, the state's first openly Black gay legislator, over former state Rep. Wengay "Newt" Newton. Rayner received 2,920 votes to Newton's 1,558 votes. A third candidate, former Marine, St. Petersburg attorney and Black activist Jesse Phillipe received 905 votes in Hillsborough County.

According to Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Craig Latimer, 66,651 voters cast their ballots Tuesday during the primary for a total of 223,120 votes cast when combined with early voters and vote-by-mail ballots.

That means less than 1,000 people went to the polls Tuesday.

The Hillsborough County supervisor said a total of 224,547 voters cast ballots in the primary for a 24.7 percent turnout, comparable to the turnout in the 2020 primary.

>> Real-time results for Hillsborough County school board races are below. Be sure to use the scroll bar on the right to see more races, and to refresh this page for updated results throughout the night.

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