Drew Wilson
Incoming Senate President Wilton Simpson raised more than $390,000 through his political committee last week, new finance reports show.
The $390,350 haul came in across 10 checks, including a pair of $100,000 contributions from political committees linked to the Associated Industries of Florida — Florida Prosperity Fund and The Voice of Florida Business.
The Trilby Republican’s committee, Jobs for Florida, also received $50,000 contributions from political committees Floridians for Economic Advancement, Liberate Florida and Direct Action Fund.
The new finance report is Jobs for Florida’s biggest since January shows — and the funds reported all landed over the course of a week rather than a month.
Simpson’s committee also spent $201,500 during the Oct. 10-16 reporting period, though the money mostly flowed to Simpson’s other political committees, Future Florida and Florida Green PAC.
Outside of the transfers, those committees did not report any income for the week.
Jobs for Florida finished the reporting period with $1.16 million on hand. It has raised just shy of $16.5 million since Simpson established it seven years ago.
Meanwhile, Future Florida and Florida Green PAC had a combined $2.2 million on hand.
Republicans hold a 23-17 advantage in the state Senate and only two districts — SD 9 and SD 39 — are viewed as potential pickups for Florida Democrats. Even if they were to pick up both seats, Simpson would take over as Senate President following the election.
