Drew Wilson
October campaign finance numbers show Republican House District 19 candidate Katherine Van Zant is still the candidate to beat in the three-way primary for the seat held by her husband, termed-out Keystone Heights Rep. Charles Van Zant.
Katherine Van Zant posted $9,601 in contributions last month and spent $3,779, leaving her campaign with about $56,000 cash on-hand. The total gives her a five-figure lead over her closest competitor, Robert Payne, who has about $43,000 on-hand after bringing in $4,800 in October.
Three of Van Zant’s 14 contributions came from Orlando-based child healthcare companies sharing the same address. Children’s Care Campus, Children’s Home Medical Equipment and Children First Home Health Care each gave $1,000, with Tallahassee shops The Davant Company and Adams Street Advocates also chipping in at the same level.
Front Street Consulting received $1,576 for its services and Reliant Florida took in $1,250 in campaign cash for managing Van Zant’s Facebook page. The campaign also paid $900 to Contribution Link for software.
Payne’s total came in through 29 contributions, including a $1,000 check from the FRSA PAC. The candidate also put in $1,033 of his own money on the October ledger. The campaign spent just under $1,000 for the month, with half of that money heading to Tallahassee-based Front Line Strategies for consulting work.
Former RPOF charwoman Leslie Dougher, the third GOP candidate to enter the race, reported an underwhelming $3,600 for the month, and her $1,300 in expenditures left her campaign with just over $30,000 on-hand heading into November. Hubert Snodgrass, the lone Democrat running for the heavily Republican seat, raised just $460, though he at least has the benefit of not facing a primary challenger
