By Ellen Gedalius
Media General News Service
Media General News Service
A protestor is arrested after breaking through a fenced area near the debate site.
By Tampa Tribune/Jason Behnken
By Tampa Tribune/Jason Behnken
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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Signs criticizing the Republican Party. Activists lining up to cast votes in a straw poll. Democratic supporters handing out literature. The homeless demanding attention.
That was the scene Wednesday afternoon and evening outside the Republican CNN/YouTube debate. Displays of political activism were apparent all over downtown St. Petersburg as people tried to convey their messages to a national audience.
By midafternoon, about 30 protesters gathered outside Mahaffey Theater, where Wednesday's debate was held. By early evening, the crowd easily doubled but wasn't as large as some might have expected.
Robert Thompson of St. Petersburg took the day off from his job in corporate sales to protest outside the debate hall.
"This is not a red country, this is not a red state, this is not a red United States," Thompson said, adding he doesn't like most of the Republican candidates.
The protests were mostly peaceful, though St. Petersburg police said they arrested three people, one juvenile and two adults charged with obstruction.
At Pioneer Park, where supporters of Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama, John Edwards and Dennis Kucinich sat behind tables handling out literature while Ron Paul supporters sold $20 tickets to a straw poll.
Also at the park, Michael Fox of the Pinellas County Democratic Executive Committee organized an event he called "Rise Up! The System Is Broken Unity Rally." About 30 groups, including Florida Consumer Action Network and several local Democratic clubs, participated. The message: Americans should play a more active role in politics.
At Vinoy Park, Republicans lined up at touch-screen machines to cast ballots in the straw poll. By night's end, more than 1,500 had voted. Mitt Romney was the clear winner in the poll, organized by the Republican parties of Hillsborough, Pasco, Polk and Manatee counties. Paul got 534 votes. The other candidates each received fewer than 40 votes.
In reality, the straw poll is fairly meaningless. Twenty dollars bought a vote and a meal, and nothing prevented a single person from buying several tickets and casting multiple votes for a favorite candidate. Paul has long had a small, but highly vocal and active group of supporters in St. Petersburg. They have shown up at many events for both parties.
Bruce Wechsler of Melbourne complained about the process.
"When I traveled to the Soviet Union, they had a system like this," he said.
Others took it in stride. John and Margie Milford of Gulfport, supporters of Rudy Giuliani, said they don't put much stock in the straw poll, but the event itself was fun. Looking at the Paul supporters, John Milford said: "I wish we could energize our base like that."
About 45 minutes into the debate, a few dozen protesters lingered on the sidewalk across from Mahaffey Theater. They didn't seem to be protesting the existing Republican candidates as much as they were protesting President Bush. They held signs criticizing the president's war policies and calling for his impeachment.
Many of the area's well-known Republicans were spotted lingering around downtown. St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker and Gov. Charlie Crist, from St. Petersburg, spent time before the debate at the Renaissance Vinoy Hotel. Clearwater Mayor Frank Hibbard mingled at the straw poll, where he planned to buy a ticket to cast a vote for Romney.
Others on hand included U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, former Tampa Mayor Dick Greco and former U.S. Sen. Connie Mack.
That was the scene Wednesday afternoon and evening outside the Republican CNN/YouTube debate. Displays of political activism were apparent all over downtown St. Petersburg as people tried to convey their messages to a national audience.
By midafternoon, about 30 protesters gathered outside Mahaffey Theater, where Wednesday's debate was held. By early evening, the crowd easily doubled but wasn't as large as some might have expected.
Robert Thompson of St. Petersburg took the day off from his job in corporate sales to protest outside the debate hall.
"This is not a red country, this is not a red state, this is not a red United States," Thompson said, adding he doesn't like most of the Republican candidates.
The protests were mostly peaceful, though St. Petersburg police said they arrested three people, one juvenile and two adults charged with obstruction.
At Pioneer Park, where supporters of Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama, John Edwards and Dennis Kucinich sat behind tables handling out literature while Ron Paul supporters sold $20 tickets to a straw poll.
Also at the park, Michael Fox of the Pinellas County Democratic Executive Committee organized an event he called "Rise Up! The System Is Broken Unity Rally." About 30 groups, including Florida Consumer Action Network and several local Democratic clubs, participated. The message: Americans should play a more active role in politics.
At Vinoy Park, Republicans lined up at touch-screen machines to cast ballots in the straw poll. By night's end, more than 1,500 had voted. Mitt Romney was the clear winner in the poll, organized by the Republican parties of Hillsborough, Pasco, Polk and Manatee counties. Paul got 534 votes. The other candidates each received fewer than 40 votes.
In reality, the straw poll is fairly meaningless. Twenty dollars bought a vote and a meal, and nothing prevented a single person from buying several tickets and casting multiple votes for a favorite candidate. Paul has long had a small, but highly vocal and active group of supporters in St. Petersburg. They have shown up at many events for both parties.
Bruce Wechsler of Melbourne complained about the process.
"When I traveled to the Soviet Union, they had a system like this," he said.
Others took it in stride. John and Margie Milford of Gulfport, supporters of Rudy Giuliani, said they don't put much stock in the straw poll, but the event itself was fun. Looking at the Paul supporters, John Milford said: "I wish we could energize our base like that."
About 45 minutes into the debate, a few dozen protesters lingered on the sidewalk across from Mahaffey Theater. They didn't seem to be protesting the existing Republican candidates as much as they were protesting President Bush. They held signs criticizing the president's war policies and calling for his impeachment.
Many of the area's well-known Republicans were spotted lingering around downtown. St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker and Gov. Charlie Crist, from St. Petersburg, spent time before the debate at the Renaissance Vinoy Hotel. Clearwater Mayor Frank Hibbard mingled at the straw poll, where he planned to buy a ticket to cast a vote for Romney.
Others on hand included U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, former Tampa Mayor Dick Greco and former U.S. Sen. Connie Mack.