St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman and four other Florida mayors asked the governor Wednesday to tighten coronavirus restrictions statewide.
Kriseman joined the mayors of Miami Beach, Sunrise, Miami Shores Village, and Hialeah in calling for Gov. Ron DeSantis to institute a statewide mandatory mask policy.
During a Zoom press conference, Kriseman said public health shouldn't be a partisan issue, noting that a number of Republican governors have issued mask orders.
"This is not Republican, Democrat, red or blue. Because look at Ohio — look at what Gov. (Mike) DeWine is doing. There are ten states that I can think of off the top of my head where Republican governors all have mandatory mask orders," Kriseman said.
"All we're asking for as mayors is for the support of an administration in Tallahassee that is looking out for the residents of the state of Florida as much as we are for the residents of our community," he said.
It's considered unlikely to succeed, as DeSantis pledged in September to not institute any more lockdowns in the future. His office reiterated that position over the weekend, even as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to grow.
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