Ken Welch is the mayor of St. Petersburg, Florida, and a former Pinellas County commissioner. He is seeking another term as mayor in 2026.
Case
Networked automated license-plate cameras can assemble searchable records of vehicle movements. Candidates and officials disagree over whether to ban the systems, keep them with limits, or defend them as investigative tools. This tracker separates outright bans from narrower restrictions.
Role at the time: St. Petersburg mayor and 2026 candidate for reelection
Statement summary
Welch defended continued use of St. Petersburg's Flock cameras, arguing that they help police and that the city has privacy protections.
“Let's talk about it without throwing out a tool that is helping us track down people that make us less safe as a community”
The reference point is whether networked license-plate reader systems such as Flock should exist and be used. Welch said the city should talk about the cameras without throwing out a tool that helps police track down people who make the community less safe. Keeping the cameras fits Defended.
Statement dates: August 19, 2026
Statement dates: August 19, 2026
Statement dates: August 19, 2026
Statement dates: August 19, 2026
