Ryan Nicol
Republican Rep. Mike Caruso remains atop the House District 89 fundraising contest, as he pulled in nearly $18,000 in January.
The race is a rematch of the 2018 contest between Caruso and former Ocean Ridge Mayor Jim Bonfiglio. Bonfiglio is the only Democrat competing in the contest. No Republicans have yet filed to take on Caruso.
In January, Caruso courted $1,000 donations from a pair of Disney subsidiaries. Political committees for Suncoast Credit Union and JPMorgan Chase Bank each added $1,000 to Caruso’s campaign as well.
So far this cycle, Caruso has raised nearly $188,000 in outside donations. He is holding about $140,000 as the campaign moves forward.
Bonfiglio, meanwhile, added just under $3,900 in January. Thus far, he’s focused on small-dollar donations but has fallen short of Caruso’s overall totals.
The Bonfiglio campaign has brought in just over $23,000 since entering the race last June. But the candidate has also put forward more than $50,000 in personal loans to his campaign. That’s been offset by just over $50,000 in expenditures so far.
In December, Bonfiglio was one of 21 candidates Forward Florida endorsed. Former Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum runs that political committee.
The 2018 contest was one of six throughout the state to head to a mandatory machine recount. After all votes were cast, Caruso edged Bonfiglio by just 32 votes out of more than 78,000, reminding voters in the south Florida district that their vote really does count.
With a presidential race in play in 2020, Bonfiglio is looking for a boost in Democratic votes to help push him over the edge this time around. HD 89 was one of only six districts in the entire state to flip from voting for Mitt Romney in 2012 to supporting Hillary Clinton in 2016, according to an analysis by MCI Maps.
HD 89 runs up the coast of Palm Beach County spanning Boca Raton, Delray Beach and Palm Beach.
Candidates and political committees faced a Monday deadline to report all financial activity through Jan. 31.
