Drew Wilson
Gov. Ron DeSantis wasn’t on the ballot last month, but his political committee still raked in cash hand over fist.
According to finance reports filed with the Florida Division of Elections, the Friends of Ron DeSantis committee brought in $521,776 last month — its biggest haul since February, before the coronavirus pandemic took root in Florida.
The money came in across 40 contributions, led off by a $75,000 check from the Voice of Florida Business, a political committee tied to the Associated Industries of Florida. AIF chipped in another $25,000 through the Associated Industries of Florida Political Action Committee.
Parimutuel interests also showed up big, with the Jacksonville Kennel Club and Orange Park Kennel Club each sending a $50,000 check to the Governor’s PAC. Another gaming interest, Gretna Racing, chipped in $25,000.
Other notables on the donor sheet include Charter Communications and the Committee for Anesthesia Safety, both of which appeared at the $50,000 level, and medical marijuana company Trulieve, which gave $25,000.
The income was offset by about $12,000 in spending. Of that, HMB Strategies received $8,750 for fundraising work and Robert Watkins & Company received $1,528 for accounting services.
The committee also paid $1,350 to Aristotle International, a voter information company, and $783 to Anedot, a payment processor for political campaigns.
Since its founding nearly three years ago, Friends of Ron DeSantis has collected $49.6 million from donors. Much of that money was collected for DeSantis’ gubernatorial campaign, with about $9.3 million flowing in after Election Day 2018.
Heading into December, the committee had about $8.3 million in the bank.
