Jacob Ogles
Cape Coral Republican Mike Giallombardo nearly pulled another five figures into his campaign coffers in May. Now he heads toward an August primary in House District 77 with a cash advantage.
No candidate in the race to succeed Rep, Dane Eagle cracked six figures in donations ahead of qualification.
Cape Coral Republican Bryan Blackwell raised $3,100 in May. That puts his total contributions at $72,305. That total includes $1,000 from Steven Brooks’ FSAA political committee.
Giallombardo, meanwhile, reported $9,065 raised in May. That puts his total raised in the race so far at $91,696. Last month, he got $1,000 boosts from state Senate candidate Ray Rodrigues and his associated political committee Free Markets For Florida. He also picked up maximum donations from campaign finance expert Eric Robinson’s Conservative Champion Leaders, campaign consultant Terry Miller’s Just The Facts, and former Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera’s Helping You committees.
With campaign costs cut out, that gives Giallombardo’s the edge in resources heading into June. He had a total of $56,136 available, while Blackwell had $47,178. Both candidates qualified this week to appear on the primary ballot.
Blackwell’s money includes a $20,000 candidate loan. But he’s spent more than Giallombardo,, pumping $45,127 to date into the race. That includes dropping about $2,000 to Republican consultant Anthony Pedicini’s Strategic Image Management in Tampa in May alone.
Giallombardo spent $35,560 on the race as of the start of June. About $5,565 was spent in May on financial and campaign consulting with Picotte & Porter and TM Strategic Consulting respectively.
Democrat Joshua Lopez also qualified for the ballot this week, after raising just $848 in May. He’s raised a total of $2,635, and reported spending just $213 on his campaign as of the start of June. Much of his cash was used this week when he paid the qualifying fee.
