Peter Schorsch
Republican businesswoman Wenda Lewis remained the top fundraiser in House District 21 last month with $32,747 in contributions.
Lewis’ April report marks the third $30,000-plus month in her campaign and after $24,798 in expenditures, the Lewis Oil CEO has $155,059 in the bank, including $100,000 in loans.
“The campaign’s message of the importance of sending a family business owner to Tallahassee continues to be received well and gather momentum,” Lewis said in a press release. “Raising money as the outsider candidate is difficult; however, the hard work and determination are showing results. We continue to grow the gap between our campaign and others.”
Since entering the race in February, Lewis has consistently pointed to her business background as qualifying her for the office — a tactic that worked well for current HD 21 Rep. Keith Perry, the owner of a roofing company, in his elections.
“The voters are clearly evaluating the candidates as a choice between our campaign that is offering a family business owner who shares their conservative values and typical run-of-the-mill politicians,” she said.
Among the highlights from the April report are a slew of checks from local gas stations and petroleum distributors as well as a $1,000 check from Florida Leadership Committee, the PAC operated by Clearwater Republican Sen. Jack Latvala.
The bulk of Lewis’ expenditures headed to Ozean Media, which was paid about $13,500 for media and consulting services.
Fellow Republican Chuck Clemons, the first candidate to file after Perry announced he would run for Senate, brought in $16,170 last month and spent only $1,522.
The April haul gives Clemons, who works for Santa Fe College, an on-hand total of $72,276, putting him ahead of Lewis before loans are taken into account.
Also running for the seat are Republican Timothy Rogers, who is in a distant third in the GOP money race with $8,300 on hand, and Democrat Merihelen Wheeler, who has about $2,300 in the bank after six weeks in the contest.
Though HD 21 holds a large bloc of Democratic voters, mainly due to the student body of the University of Florida, Republicans have held the seat since it was redrawn in 2012 and are likely to continue the streak in 2016 with Perry’s successor being chosen in the Republican primary.
