Voters looking for policy distinctions between the two progressive Democrats vying for the House District 68 seat won't exactly find a battle of ideologies.
But in the final stretch before Tuesday's primary, lawyer Ben Diamond, 37, and defense strategist Eric Lynn, 38, diverged on the wisdom of whether to merge Tampa Bay's transportation authorities.
They also upped the offense against each other.
In a 30-minute debate on community radio station WMNF-FM 88.5, Diamond said he was in favor of merging the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority with the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority. It's an idea state Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, first floated in 2011 to save both agencies from financial ruin and improve infrastructure. HART's board rejected the idea.
"I have become convinced that the only way we're going to make progress with this very difficult problem is by taking a regional approach," said Diamond, a PSTA board member.
"What I hear from the Florida Department of Transportation all the time (is) … you guys in Tampa Bay, you're still fighting with each other. It's Tampa versus St. Pete, it's Hillsborough versus Pinellas. We all need to get on the same page."
Lynn instead called for giving Florida cities the authority to hold referendums to allow their residents to decide whether they want to fund mass transit.
Such an idea has been floated by Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn, and those referendums might be easier to pass in urban areas than in the sprawling counties. Two countywide transportation referendums were rejected by voters in Hillsborough in 2010 and Pinellas in 2014.
"We should have the opportunity for cities to take their own vote," Lynn said.
As for merging HART and PSTA, Lynn said: "I haven't been convinced yet by the numbers that it would actually do much to help transportation, but I'm open to hearing about it."
The first real warning shots were also fired this week in what has so far been a relatively civil campaign.
A mailer paid for by Diamond's political committee, Protecting Pinellas Families, blasted Lynn's use of two homestead exemptions in Washington, D.C., and Maryland last year, a violation of law in both jurisdictions.
"Eric Lynn. Washington Lobbyist. Tax Violations. Caught Cheating the System," the mailer stated.
The flier cites a July 2015 Tampa Bay Times article that reported Lynn had a homestead exemption for a $700,000 condo in Washington and another exemption in Maryland for a $715,000 home.
Lynn blamed the Office of Tax and Revenue in Washington for not properly processing his 2014 request to have the exemption removed after he paid for a permit to turn it into a rental property. He refunded $606 to the tax office the day he was contacted by the Times.
"What's most disappointing about this is Ben knows the facts about this and he knows it was debunked, and he knows it was a clerical error but he chose to make this attack," Lynn said Thursday.
Lynn also criticized the largest campaign contribution Diamond has received: $20,000 from Heritage Property & Casualty Insurance Co. Lynn drew comparisons to the $52 million contract Heritage received in 2013 from a state-run insurance firm after donating $110,000 to Gov. Rick Scott's re-election campaign.
"I'm proud of the fact I have the support of businesses in our district and I also have the support of labor leaders in our district," Diamond said. "I am not in anyone's pocket and certainly not a fan of Rick Scott."
The race between Diamond, counsel to former Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, and Lynn, who worked as an adviser to three secretaries of defense in the Obama administration, has shaken up the Democratic base in Pinellas County.
Lynn originally ran for the seat in Congressional District 13. But after former Gov. Charlie Crist joined that race, in May Lynn switched to House District 68, which covers much of St. Petersburg and Pinellas Park.
St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman had endorsed Lynn in the congressional race and Diamond in the House race before the switch. The Stonewall Democrats of Pinellas County had such a hard time choosing that the group gave them a rare dual endorsement.
"To tell you the truth, I wish they weren't both running in the same race," Stonewall vice president Jane Morris said.
As of last week, Diamond's campaign had raised $237,847 along with $68,000 by his political committee.
Lynn's campaign was ahead with $107,673 on top of $328,355 raised by his political committee, Pinellas Community Voters Fund.
Contact Tracey McManus at tmcmanus@tampabay.com or (727) 445-4151. Follow @TroMcManus.