Mitch Perry
The David Jolly campaign announced on Sunday that it had raised more than $1 million in “total receipts” in 2015.
“I’m excited about where our campaign is with our unapologetic message of advancing Florida values, with recent polls showing us ahead by 20 points, and with receipts this cycle now exceeding $1 million,” Jolly said in a statement.
The Pinellas County congressman is running for the Florida Republican Party nomination for U.S. Senate this year. Total fundraising numbers are not available, but at the end of the third quarter, Jolly had raised $878,985 in total receipts.
Jolly’s fundraising numbers, for example, pale in comparison to Ponte Vedra U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, who raised $722,000 in the fourth quarter of 2015 and had more than $2.5 million on hand.
The Miami Herald reported Saturday that Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera raised about $318,000 in the final three months of 2015 and has about $431,000 cash on hand.
Defense contractor Todd Wilcox, the fourth candidate in the GOP Senate race, reports raising $324,641 in the fourth quarter of 2015. Wilcox has raised a total of $1,086,422 in the race, and has $873,656 cash on hand.
Though Jolly isn’t leading in fundraising, he does have a substantial lead in at least one poll: A Florida Atlantic University survey released this month shows him leading both DeSantis and Lopez-Cantera by 20 percentage points, 28 percent to 8 percent.
“For candidates who decide to ignore the will of the voters and continue to focus their efforts fully on resources at the expense of the public trust, I intend to make fundraising a major political issue in this race,” said Jolly, who filed a bill in Congress this month that would bar federal officeholders from direct fundraising.
Financial reports are due to the Federal Election Commission on Sunday. The Senate primary is Aug. 30.
