Kelly Hayes
Republican Danny Burgess is $112,380 ahead of Democrat Kathy Lewis, despite a recent slow fundraising period in the race for Florida Senate District 20.
Burgess, who is the fundraising frontrunner in the race, had small contribution numbers in the most recent finance report, which spanned Aug. 14 through Aug. 21.
The Republican candidate only brought in $700, while Lewis raised $4,216 in the same period. However, the Florida Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee provided Burgess $11,000 worth of consulting this period, listed as an in kind contribution.
Despite his small haul in the most recent reporting period, Burgess spent $21,321 that week. Lewis only spent $448.
Since the start of his campaign, Burgess has raked in $222,340. Lewis has raised a total of $32,096, but has also loaned her campaign $3,370. Burgess has spent significantly more than Lewis, totaling at $88,386 in expenditures. Lewis, on the other hand, has only spent $10,521.
As the two head into the General Election, Lewis has $21,575 cash on hand, and Burgess has about $133,955.
Burgess entered the race with strong party backing, earning several key Republican endorsements. Senate President Designate Wilton Simpson and Senate Majority Leader Kathleen Passidomo, as well as Gov. Ron DeSantis, Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis and Attorney General Ashley Moody have all endorsed Burgess.
The district, which covers parts of Hillsborough, Pasco and Polk counties, leans only slightly right. Of the district’s 335,060 registered voters, 120,325 are Republicans and 117,135 are Democrats. The district also has about 4,440 third party voters and 93,158 voters with no party affiliation.
Still, Burgess is considered the heavy favorite.
The race for Senate District 20 is a Special Election, following the early resignation of Sen. Tom Lee. The seat was not supposed to be up for election until 2022. Lee endorsed Burgess as his successor. Though it’s technically a Special Election, the race will be on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Lee, a vice president of Sabal Homes of Florida, served in the Senate from 1996 to 2006 and returned in 2012. Lee also went up against current candidate Kathy Lewis in 2018, where he defeated her by 7 percentage points.
