ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — As voters start heading to the polls, residents in Pinellas County will be split between two congressional districts when voting for their United States Representative.
Most of Pinellas County is engulfed in Congressional District 13, but the east coast of St. Petersburg votes as a part of District 14.
In District 13, Republican Incumbent Anna Paulina Luna is up against Democrat Whitney Fox. In District 14, Democratic Incumbent Kathy Castor is facing Republican Robert "Rocky" Rochford.
District 13 leans red with 205,211 people registered to vote as Republicans and 150,684 registered as Democrats, according to data from the Supervisor of Election's Office from the primary. Although, Trump did lose to Biden in the district in 2020.
Here's what you need to know about the candidates in District 13:
Anna Paulina Luna
Who is she: Luna is a United States Air Force Veteran and has been on Capitol Hill since 2023.
She grew up in Southern California with her single mother and details her struggles growing up, including her father's battles with drug addiction, according to her about page on her website.
Luna also holds a bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of West Florida.
In Washington, she serves on the Natural Resources and Oversight and Accountability Committees. She previously ran for Congress in 2020 but was unsuccessful.
Issues she's focused on: On the issues portion of her website, she highlights education, energy independence, the environment, government accountability, immigration and veterans. All of which she has a more right-leaning stance.
She said she opposes critical race theory being taught in schools. Her website says "gender theory in education is destroying our children and permanently harming their bodies."
As a descendant of Mexican immigrants, her stance on immigration aligns with the rest of the Republican party. She wants to finish the border wall, end DACA and crack down on illegal immigration in America. She said she opposes amnesty as a pathway to citizenship.
She has remained quiet on the highly debated Amendment 4 that will be on the ballot, which could guarantee access to abortion "before viability." She previously described herself as a "pro-life extremist," according to the New York Times.
What she's done: Last year, she sponsored a resolution to censure California Rep. Adam Schiff for comments he made about investigations into Presidential nominee Donald Trump's ties to Russia.
A vocal Trump supporter, she introduced a bill with a group of GOP representatives in a push to award him with a Congressional Gold Medal for ushering "profound changes to United States diplomatic relations with countries around the world."
She also has co-sponsored legislation to cap student loan interest rates, crackdown against drug cartels and eliminate taxes on seniors' Social Security benefits.
Whitney Fox
Who is she: Fox was the former Communications Director for the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority. She held various marketing positions before that, including working for Visit St. Pete/Clearwater.
She was born and raised in Tampa Bay and said she has worked with Democrats and Republicans at the local, state and federal level to "deliver results for Pinellas County."
She holds a bachelor's in advertising and public relations from the University of Central Florida.
Issues she's focused on: The candidate has been vocal on her abortion-rights stance and if elected "will fight to protect women’s reproductive freedoms and healthcare, including access to IVF," according to her website.
She previously told the New York Times that Luna's previous opposition to abortion rights was part of what motivated her to join the race.
According to her campaign website, her top priority is addressing the affordability crisis. She wants to lower the costs of prescription drugs and expand the $35 cap for insulin to everyone, not just seniors. In terms of insurance, she wants to create a federal homeowners insurance policy for natural disasters covering primary residences.
She plans to promote affordable housing by pushing for increased down payment assistance, supporting tax incentives for development and supporting rental assistance among others.
As a mother of two, she also emphasized she is committed to supporting comprehensive paid family, parental and medical leave policies.
