A.G. GancarskiState Rep. Paul Renner, who will be House Speaker in a few short years, continues to be among the most prodigious fundraisers in the Florida House.
September was yet another characteristically robust month of fundraising for political committees associated with the Palm Coast state Representative, with one particularly standing out.
Conservatives for Principled Leadership raised $176,500, giving the committee just under $950,000 on hand.
The Florida Chamber of Commerce PAC paced donors, accounting for $41,000 of the early autumnal haul. Energy giants TECO, Duke Energy and Florida Power and Light chipped in $10,000 each, as did Associated Industries of Florida’s PAC.
The Florida Foundation for Liberty political committee hauled in $29,500, with health care provider Centene pacing all contributors with a $10,000 check. This committee has just under $270,000 on hand.
With well over $1.2 million to deploy, Renner is positioned to play in as many campaigns as he sees fit in the 2020 cycle and beyond.
Renner’s campaign account, meanwhile, brought in $7,000 and spent a bit more than that. He has roughly $57,000 in hard money on hand.
Renner is on track to be House Speaker in 2022-24, assuming the GOP holds control of that chamber, but he still faces a general election challenge in 2020 in the Flagler-centric House District 24.
Perennial candidate Adam Morley, a St. Augustine Democrat who has previously lost by double digits to Renner, will attempt again to overcome a GOP registration advantage.
Morley has under $400 banked as of September 30.
Renner, like many politicians to the south of Jacksonville, is yoked to interests in Northeast Florida.
He is a Jacksonville lawyer by trade and will have strong regional support in the coming years as he moves toward the Speakership.
Rep. Travis Cummings, a Clay County Republican who is leaving the House in 2020, continues to fundraise at a Rennerian pace.
Cummings, currently the House Appropriations Chair. is “interested in Renner being successful.”
Undoubtedly, others will share that interest.
