Kelly Kirschner
Kelly Kirschner served on the Sarasota City Commission and as mayor of Sarasota, worked in higher-education leadership at Eckerd College, and co-founded the nonprofit UnidosNow, which he says has helped more than 1,000 first-generation students earn scholarships. He entered the open CD 16 race in May 2026 and won the Aug. 18, 2026 Democratic primary with about 43.8% of the vote over Tamika Lyles (19.4%), Jonathan Harris, Glenn Pearson and Jan Schneider.
How they got on the ballot: Won Aug 18, 2026 Democratic primary with ~43.8% over Lyles (~19.4%), Harris, Pearson and Schneider (Spectrum News 13; Yahoo/Herald-Tribune)
Campaign finance (FEC filings through 10/14/2026): raised $876,363, spent $615,224, cash on hand $261,139; $861,361 from individual donors, $14,500 from PACs, $502 from the candidate. FEC filings ↗
Sources last checked 2026-10. Report an error ↗
Positions on the major issues
Compare with opponents →Each entry describes what the candidate has said or done, and what they say they will do, in neutral terms with sources. The chip shows how that relates to the statement voters rate in the matching tool.
Taxes & spending Leans disagree· stated position
Kirschner says billionaires, lobbyists and corporations 'have treated Congress like a vending machine' with the result that ordinary people 'pay more for groceries, prescriptions and rent while they pay less in taxes'; he has not made tax cuts a priority.
Immigration Leans disagree· stated position
At the Sept. 23 forum Kirschner criticized the scale of immigration-enforcement spending, called for a national conversation on immigration reform and pointed to the role of immigrant labor in agriculture and construction. He has described ICE raids as political theater.
"Right now, spending $75 billion and not having a national conversation on immigration reform is insane."
Health care Strongly agrees· stated position
At the Sept. 23 forum Kirschner said the first thing he would push for in Congress is restoring the enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies that expired at the end of last year, which he said cost coverage for more than 200,000 families in the district and about 440,000 Floridians. He said he supports 'looking into' a Medicare for All approach.
"Literally that family walked away from their health insurance."
Social Security & Medicare Strongly agrees· stated position
At the Sept. 23 forum Kirschner said the payroll-tax cap should be scrapped so higher earners pay Social Security taxes on all of their income.
Environment & water Leans agree· stated position
Campaign materials prioritize water-quality protection and addressing 'unchecked development'; endorsed by the Democratic Environmental Caucus of Florida.
Elections & voting Leans agree· stated position
At the Sept. 23 forum Kirschner opposed a mandatory voter-identification requirement and called the SAVE Act a distraction from actual election-integrity questions.
Tariffs & trade Strongly disagrees· stated position
In a written questionnaire posted by the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce, Kirschner listed 'illegal tariff wars' first among federal actions he said are eroding local purchasing power, putting the cost at about $2,000 per household per year, alongside the end of enhanced ACA subsidies and rising insurance and fuel costs.
"Illegal tariff wars ($2000 cost/household/year)"
Trump administration Leans disagree· stated position
Says working families 'were promised relief eighteen months ago but instead got higher rent, higher insurance, higher gasoline, and higher grocery bills,' and criticizes Donald Trump and Rick Scott for targeting immigrants.
No public position found on 9 issues
We searched campaign sites, questionnaires, interviews, votes and official actions and did not find a clear stance on: Housing affordability, Abortion, Guns, Education & school choice, Crime & policing, Gender identity laws, Energy & utilities, Ukraine, Veterans. This is reported as unknown rather than guessed from party affiliation; these issues are excluded from this candidate's match score.
Positions on issues outside this office's scope (2)
Property insurance Leans agree· stated position
Cites a 78% rise in Florida property-insurance costs over three years and proposes a national catastrophic reinsurance fund to stabilize the market, plus a fully funded FEMA and 'affordable home and flood insurance.' The proposal is a federal backstop rather than a state rate cap.
Growth & development Leans agree· stated position
Says the region faces unchecked development and that protecting water quality should be a priority.
Other issues this candidate has raised
- Campaign-finance reform / no corporate PAC money — Says he takes no corporate PAC contributions and wants to end the influence of billionaires and lobbyists on Congress.
- War powers — Calls for an end to the 'blank check' era of foreign wars and pledges to hold Congress to its constitutional duty to declare war.
- FEMA funding and hurricane relief — Platform calls for a fully funded FEMA for hurricane relief.
- National catastrophic reinsurance fund — Proposes a federal catastrophic natural-disaster reinsurance fund to stabilize property-insurance markets.
- Artificial intelligence and company liability — At the Sept. 23 forum Kirschner said technology companies should be held liable for harms arising from artificial intelligence products.
- New College of Florida spending — Kirschner has criticized the cost of the state-directed changes at New College of Florida, saying a degree there now costs taxpayers far more than before; a state report last November put the figure at $494,715 per degree. Gruters was executive director of the New College Foundation for the past two years.
- Republican endorsements and internal poll — Kirschner held a press conference announcing endorsements from several Republicans, including former U.S. Rep. Dan Miller, who represented Sarasota from 1992 to 2002. Kirschner also released an internal poll showing him ahead by one point in a district drawn about 13 points Republican.
- Published paid-media plan drew criticism; performance at the Sept. 23 forum questioned — Florida Politics wrote on Sept. 29 that Kirschner's campaign website publishes a detailed paid-media plan describing the connected-television, YouTube, broadcast, cable and mail advertising he wants outside groups to fund, and called it a plea for a rescue that does not explain why the race merits investment. The column noted federal filings through July 29 showed Gruters with more than $1 million in receipts to about $297,000 for Kirschner, that Cook rates the seat Solid Republican, and that at the Sept. 23 League of Women Voters forum Gruters challenged him over owning stock in technology companies building AI data centers while criticizing them, and no-party candidate Mark Davis said in closing, 'I like Kelly, but he's a liar.'
- Pledged regular town halls across the six-county district — In the Chamber questionnaire Kirschner said the district's current representative has not held a town hall in more than a decade and that he would hold published town halls throughout the six-county district, and noted he served more than a decade on the St. Petersburg Chamber board.
Record: votes, actions and documented facts
- Reported more than $100,000 raised in his first week and $224,000 in his first quarter as a candidate.
Endorsements (as reported)
- Florida AFL-CIO
- West Central Florida Labor Council
- Democratic Environmental Caucus of Florida
- Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus
- Former U.S. Rep. Dan Miller, Manatee County Commissioner George Kruse and former Manatee High football coach Joe Kinnan (Republicans)
- Dan Miller, former U.S. Representative for Sarasota (1992-2002), and other local Republicans
- Tampa Bay Times (Gallaty and Brink both chose Kirschner)