Just 18 days into his campaign for Florida’s 13th Congressional District, Democratic challenger Timothy “Brandt” Robinson is beginning to sketch a case for a different kind of representation in Pinellas County.
Robinson, a longtime history teacher, is challenging Republican incumbent Anna Paulina Luna. He said he believes her approach has left constituents without consistent engagement on issues that directly affect their lives.
“What surprises me is she isn’t speaking about things that matter,” Robinson said. He pointed to health care, insurance affordability and housing as priorities he says have gone largely unaddressed.
Robinson has been active with Indivisible Pinellas, part of a national grassroots network that formed after Donald Trump’s election and focuses on civic participation. The local group now draws about 150 people to its monthly meetings, according to Robinson. Earlier this year, it organized a town hall intended for Luna. She did not attend. A photo of the congresswoman was placed at the front of the room while residents addressed the picture questions in her absence.
“It’s not satire,” Robinson said. “It was about giving people a place to be heard.”
Robinson said he views Luna’s political style as driven more by culture-war rhetoric than policy. He pointed to the repeated use of terms like DEI and woke and said educators have been unfairly accused of indoctrination. He said he would rather hear clear positions on health care and affordability than what he described as vehemence.
When asked what he would want to deliver if elected, Robinson returned to Florida’s insurance crisis. He said residents should not have to fear losing coverage or being unable to rebuild after a storm. “Here in Pinellas County my life would be better if there was a storm and after I didn’t have to fear losing my insurance and being able to rebuild a home,” he said.
Robinson said Florida is the only place he has ever lived and that sense of permanence shapes how he views public service. He also referenced his involvement in the No Kings movement, which emphasizes civic responsibility and participation.
On the question of influence in Congress, Robinson said he is less concerned with recognition than momentum. “They don’t need to believe me,” he said. “They need to believe the citizens of Pinellas that follow me, not Democrats or Republicans, but Americans.”
As an educator for more than 20 years, Robinson said public education remains central to his concerns. He criticized the elimination of the federal Department of Education under Trump and warned that Florida’s expansion of charter schools risks repeating past inequities.
“We had segregated Jim Crow schools,” Robinson said. “We can’t go back to that. I’m a vehement defender of public schools.”