A.G. Gancarski
State Sen. Travis Hutson, despite abandoning his bid for the 2022-24 Senate Presidency, is still a major force in Republican politics in 2020.
That’s the message to be taken by his 2019 fundraising, which finished strong in December, according to one of his political consultants.
Last year, Hutson raised $1.6 million between his two political committees, First Coast Business Foundation and Sunshine State Conservatives.
December was a strong month, also, with $154,000 raised to that latter committee.
All told, the Senator has $650,000 to deploy from his political committees, money that very easily could be re-routed to help favored candidates and causes should the need arise.
Hutson faces a general election in 2020, though he likely has an unassailable position.
The Senator represents the 7th district, which includes Flagler, St. Johns, and northern Volusia County, and has a distinct GOP registration advantage.
Of the nearly 410,000 registered voters, over 180,000 are Republicans. Roughly 122,000 are Democrats, and the rest are either third-party registrants or lack party affiliation.
Hutson is currently unopposed on the ballot, for both the primary and general election.
Should he happen to draw a challenger, however, he is well-capitalized, with roughly $144,000 on hand from $220,125 in total funds raised (with $3,000 brought in last month).
Hutson has been in the Senate since 2014, and has represented SD 7 since 2016, after maps were redrawn.
