Terri Balliet, one of two candidates so far in the race to replace term-limited incumbent Gina Driscoll, is officially kicking off her campaign for St. Petersburg City Council, District 6 next week.
The event will be at Voodoo Brewing located at 220 4th St. North in St. Pete on Sept. 25 from 6-8 p.m.
Balliet, a local nonprofit leader who serves as the CEO of the Children’s Network of Hillsborough County, so far faces Linsey Grove, a nonprofit consultant[1] who owns and runs The Hypatia Collaborative, a nonprofit shared services organization that provides administrative and support services and consulting to small nonprofits in the region.
As of the end of June, Balliet had raised nearly $7,500 for her race. Grove filed in late July and has yet to report any financial activity.[2]
As of Tuesday, no other candidates had filed for 2026 City Council races, which include even-numbered districts.
Balliet is running with support from former Mayor Rick Kriseman, who endorsed her last month[3]. This week, he sent an email blast further supporting her, and urging his contacts to attend the campaign kickoff.
Balliet has spent a majority of her working life trying to make a difference in our community, Kriseman noted, pointing to her work as co-creator of the Community Assistance and Life Liaison (CALL) program used by the St. Pete Police Department to allow social workers, rather than law enforcement, to respond to nonviolent 911 calls involving homelessness, substance use or mental health issues.
The program is being used as a national model to improve compassionate response to nonviolent crises, while allowing law enforcement to focus its efforts on violent crime and other issues for which officers are professionally trained to handle.
He also offered praise for Balliet’s recognition with the Community Champions award for work reducing the number of kids in foster care, and by the Tampa Bay Lightning Foundation as a Community Hero.
“I have great confidence that she would serve our community as a councilmember with integrity, honesty, transparency, and passion. I hope you will consider attending this event and meeting Terri,” Kriseman wrote.
In her current role with the Children’s Network of Hillsborough County, Balliet oversees a $120 million budget and more than 300 employees who work to improve child welfare services and human trafficking response across the Tampa Bay region.
Balliet also previously served as Chief Operating Officer for the Gulf Coast Jewish Family and Community Services.
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References
- ^ nonprofit consultant (www.linkedin.com)
- ^ filed in late July (cityofstpetersburgfl.easyvotecampaignfinance.com)
- ^ endorsed her last month (floridapolitics.com)