Ryan Nicol
Miami-Dade County mayoral candidate Alex Penelas raised at least $310,000 in June, holding onto his money lead in the contest.
Officials from the Daniella Levine Cava campaign — which has been second to Penelas in money raised — say she added another $175,000 in June. Her campaign collected just over $600,000 in May, though that was largely thanks to a $500,000 contribution from mega-donor Donald Sussman to Levine Cava’s political committee, Our Democracy.
Absent that outlier, June is Levine Cava’s best fundraising month since Aug. 2019, when she crossed $200,000 raised.
The hefty sums continue to pour in as candidates seek to replace term-limited Mayor Carlos Giménez.
Penelas’ numbers cover contributions through June 26 to his campaign and his political committee, Bold Vision. With the Aug. 18 primary election nearing, candidates are now required to submit fundraising reports every two weeks. Candidates face a Friday deadline to report all financial activity through June 26.
That means Penelas may have extended his lead even further in June’s final days. The next fundraising report is due July 17. That report will span all activity through July 10.
Still, Levine Cava’s team sounded confident as she’s continued to add endorsements in the race.
“With less than 47 days until Election Day and 13 days until vote by mail ballots go out, our campaign continues to gain tremendous momentum,” said Deputy Campaign Manage Manny Orozco.
“We are organizing and mobilizing the largest, most powerful grassroots movement our county has ever seen. This isn’t just a representation of how much our community craves change — but how folks from all walks of life are coming together behind a leader they can trust and believe in.”
Rounding out the contest are Carlos Antonio De Armas, entrepreneur Monique Nicole Barley, County Commissioners Esteban “Steve” Bovo and Xavier Suarez, and real estate agent Ludmilla Domond.
Suarez added just under $63,000 through June 26 between his campaign and his political committee, Imagine Miami PC.
During that same span, Bovo brought in $47,000 through his political committee, A Better Miami-Dade. Bovo’s campaign also added $6,600 through June 12, but has not yet submitted reports covering June 13-26.
Domond added $3,300 through June 12 but has also not submitted the most recent reports. The remaining two candidates do not appear to be actively fundraising.
The Miami-Dade County mayoral election will take place alongside Florida’s primary elections Aug. 18. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote — a high likelihood in the seven-person field — a runoff between the top two candidates will be held during the Nov. 3 general election.
