Ryan Nicol
Republican state Rep. Vance Aloupis is continuing his fundraising spree to fend off a Democratic challenger, as he added another $30,000 to his campaign in the month of December.
In October, Franccesca Cesti-Browne filed to challenge the incumbent Aloupis in House District 115. Cesti-Browne is the former chairperson for the Miami-Dade County Hispanic Affairs Advisory Board.
Since then, Aloupis has ramped up his fundraising efforts. From October through December, he’s posted three of his five highest fundraising months of the cycle.
Aloupis’ December totals included several maxed-out $1,000 donations from various industries including FPL, Anheuser-Busch and a pair of $1,000 donations from two Disney Vacation subsidiaries. Powerhouse law firm Greenberg Traurig also kicked in $1,000, as did state Rep. Daniel Perez‘ political committee, Conservatives for a Better Florida.
Aloupis closed out 2019 with more than $220,000 added for the campaign. He carries nearly $187,000 in remaining cash into 2020.
While Aloupis secured more than $30,000 in December, Cesti-Browne reported just over $500 raised.
She managed to top $8,400 raised in October, her first month as a candidate. But November saw just over $5,100 collected for Cesti-Browne, with another drop this past month.
Cesti-Browne enters 2020 with more than $14,000 raised, most of which is still banked.
HD 115 has appeared to be purple in recent years. Republican Rep. Michael Bileca managed an easy 18-point win in 2014, riding a Republican wave that swept through the House after Barack Obama‘s reelection.
But in 2016, Bileca’s margin of victory shrunk to just over 7 points. And Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton managed to take the district by 10 percentage points, as Republican nominee Donald Trump won the state and the presidency.
In 2018, Aloupis succeeded the term-limited Bileca by defeating his Democratic opponent, Jeff Solomon, by just 1 percentage point. While Aloupis held onto the seat for Republicans in 2018, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum and Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson both came out on top among HD 115 voters despite, like Clinton, losing the state overall.
But Aloupis will enter 2020 with a large money lead as well as a newfound incumbent status.
HD 115 covers parts of Pinecrest, South Miami and Palmetto Bay.
Candidates and political committees faced a Friday deadline to report all fundraising activity through the end of 2019.
