Scott Powers
Democrat Anna Eskamani has raised more than $350,000 in her bid for Florida House District 47, her campaign announced Tuesday.
The amount, according to her campaign, is an extraordinary total for a first-time candidate to a Florida House seat. It speaks to both her campaign’s fundraising prowess and to the unusual phenomenon of her campaign, which has drawn national attention as a 28-year-old progressive, landing Eskamani on the covers of national magazines for her run for a relatively obscure political position.
Yet, it does not necessarily reflect her chances of victory in a purple district in which she’s facing an experienced political hand in Republican nominee Stockton Reeves VI, who last week dispatched his Republican primary rival Mikaela Nix in tough and highly contentious battle.
The two are battling over a seat held by Republican state Rep. Mike Miller who is running for Congress. It has flipped twice in the past three elections, serving north and central Orange County including downtown Orlando.
Eskamani’s declaration that she has topped $350,000, from 2,200 individual donors, includes at least $309,000 into her official campaign and another $36,000 into her independent political committee, People Power For Florida, according to the latest posted state campaign finance reports. Those totals do not include her most recent contributions since Aug. 23 for her official campaign.
“I never thought I would run for office one day,” Eskamani stated in a news release issued Tuesday. “My drive to hold politicians accountable and fight for Florida families is grounded in my lived experiences and the personal loss of my Mom when I was thirteen years old. I want to build a state where no kid loses their parent, and no parent loses their kid. This is personal for me, and I am honored to be paving the way for the next generation of leaders in Florida.”
She emerged from last Tuesday’s primary season — she was unopposed after a Democratic challenger dropped out — with more than $254,000 in the bank. Reeves, who donated $94,000 to his own campaign, entered the post-primary period with about $41,000 in the bank.
