Jesse Scheckner
Republican Rep. Demi Busatta Cabrera crossed the $80,000 mark last month in money raised toward her 2022 reelection campaign for House District 114, which she flipped red last year.
So far, she’s running unopposed.
Busatta Cabrera in June added $13,500 to her campaign coffers — $11,000 in direct donations and $2,500 through her political committee, People Above Politics.
Her campaign has raised nearly $50,000 since December and she brought in $34,000 through her political committee, which launched in January.
Her campaign has spent some $20,000 through June. The three largest expenditures — $2,546 on Feb. 16, $2,500 on June 14 and $2,127 on June 17 — were self-reimbursements.
The biggest donation to her campaign to date, $19,500, came in February from Miami United, a political committee run by Rep. Daniel Perez.
She also received $5,000 in March from The Big Easy Casino, a gambling and gaming site in Hallandale Beach formerly called Mardi Gras Casino and Hollywood Greyhound Track.
Busatta Cabrera defeated Democratic opponent Jean-Pierre Bado by a 9-point margin after outraising him on the campaign trail ahead of their November showdown to represent HD 114, which spans parts of unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Cutler Bay, South Miami, West Miami and Coral Gables, where she lives.
Democrat Javier Fernandez vacated the HD 114 seat, which he had held since 2018, for an unsuccessful bid for Senate District 39 last year.
Before him, Democrat Daisy Baez held the seat after winning by a 2-point margin in 2016. She resigned her seat a year later after pleading guilty to a perjury charge after the Miami Herald reported she had lied about living in the district.
Busata Cabrera’s legislative efforts have largely squared with the priorities listed on her campaign website. Among them: helping state and local governments secure funds to address flooding and sea level rise and improve the child foster system.
She currently serves on the Joint Administrative Procedures Committee, Judiciary Committee and Criminal Justice and Public Safety, Agriculture and Natural Resource Appropriations, Finance and Facilities, and Environment, Agriculture and Flooding subcommittees.
Before entering politics, she worked in the nonprofit sector and as the chief of staff for former Sen. Anitere Flores. Her House webpage lists her occupation as “nonprofit development director.”
Monday is the deadline for candidates and political committees to report financial activity through the end of June.
