Five candidates are running in Clearwater’s City Council election this August.
Candidates had until 5 p.m. Friday to submit paperwork to be on the Aug. 18 ballot. Two seats, 4 and 5, are open. City Council members represent the entire city, and any registered voter in the city can vote for all seats.
Bianca Latvala, 39, and Jared Leone, 43, qualified for Seat 4. Latvala works in digital marketing and is the chairperson of the city’s Community Resiliency and Leisure Services Advisory Board. She is married to Pinellas County Commissioner Chris Latvala.
Leone, who made a bid for council in 2024, is a freelance journalist, president of the Clearwater Neighborhoods Coalition and vice president of the nonprofit Keep Pinellas Beautiful.
Latvala’s campaign received more than $23,000 in contributions from February through March, more than any candidate in the race, according to a finance report. A political action committee for Latvala took in $10,000 last quarter. Leone reported $2,620 in contributions from February to April.
Term-limited council member David Allbritton currently holds Seat 4.
Three people qualified for Seat 5: Sam Wilson, 26, Kevin R. T. Laughlin, 67, and former City Council member Mark Bunker, 69.
Wilson is the district director for U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna and is backed by the local Republican party. He reported $15,850 in contributions last quarter.
Laughlin is the chairperson of the Clearwater Marine Advisory Board. He owns and operates a local business and is a long-time performer in community theater. Laughlin has not yet submitted a campaign finance report.
Bunker served on the dais from 2020 to 2024. Bunker is a longtime critic of the Church of Scientology and was the first candidate in decades to discuss the church openly. He reported $1,214 in total contributions in the last quarter.
Council member Lina Teixeira, who currently holds Seat 5, is not seeking reelection to focus on family.
To qualify to run for office, candidates had to submit at least 250 petitions cards signed by registered voters, in addition to a qualifying fee and financial disclosure form. Starting this year, there will be a run-off election Nov. 3 if no candidate receives a majority of votes in the regular election.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to confirm that Bunker qualified to run for City Council Seat 5.
