Keith Perry adds $54K, Kayser Enneking $44K in SD 8 race
Sen. Keith Perry. Image via Phil Sears.

Legislature 20 ps 042817

Gainesville Republican Sen. Keith Perry’s money lead in the Senate District 8 race ticked up a couple notches in March with $54,100 raised between his campaign and committee.

Gainesville physician Kayser Enneking, the leading Democrat running for the Alachua County-based seat brought in $44,213 during the same stretch.

SD 8 is a top target for Senate Democrats this cycle and could be key in determining who will be Senate President after the 2022 elections.

Perry, a roofer by trade, won the seat in 2016 over Democrat Rod Smith, a former state party chair and former state Senator, by about four points. President Donald Trump also carried the seat by less than a point – the smallest margin among the 21 Senate districts he won.

With March in the books, Perry has raised a total of $416,207 between his campaign and committee, Building a Prosperous Florida. He started April with about $379,000 in the bank.

Enneking’s total now sits at $248,520 raised with about $195,000 on hand.

Perry’s March haul included a $4,000 check for his PAC from Floridians for a Strong Economy, a committee tied to Ocala Republican Sen. Dennis Baxley, a dark horse candidate for Senate President.

The campaign report showed 53 contributions, 42 of which were for $1,000, the maximum contribution for a state legislative campaign.

He also received $15,357 worth of “in-kind” contributions from the Republican Party of Florida for staff, polling and research.

Enneking’s campaign report wasn’t as top heavy – just 14 max checks were among her 242 contributions, including more than 200 small-dollar donations of $250 or less.

Interestingly, more than 90 percent of the donors in Enneking’s campaign report had a zip code within Senate District 8, while Perry’s report didn’t show a single check from within SD 8’s borders.

Olysha Magruder, the other Democrat vying for the seat, brought in $3,568 in March. She’s now raised about $19,000 and has $7,727 in the bank.

SD 8 covers all of Alachua and Putnam counties as well as the northern half of Marion County and is one of a handful of districts that became more favorable to Democrats after the Senate map was redrawn ahead of the 2016 elections.

Drew Wilson

Drew Wilson covers legislative campaigns and fundraising for Florida Politics. He is a former editor at The Independent Florida Alligator and business correspondent at The Hollywood Reporter. Wilson, a University of Florida alumnus, covered the state economy and Legislature for LobbyTools and The Florida Current prior to joining Florida Politics.



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