Debbie Wasserman Schultz raises more than $289K in 2Q as she seeks 10th term in House

Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz holds more than $750,000 in her campaign account as she gears up for a 10th election campaign for the U.S. House.

Wasserman Schultz raised just over $289,000 in the second quarter of 2021, according to documents filed with the Federal Election Commission. That gives Wasserman Schultz more than $441,000 raised this cycle in the race for Florida’s 23rd Congressional District.

She has also spent nearly $335,000 this cycle, including more than $133,000 last quarter. But Wasserman Schultz also held over a hefty sum from previous campaigns, as she’s now Florida’s longest-tenured current member of Congress behind only Republican Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart.

Republican candidate Carla Spalding, who challenged Wasserman Schultz last cycle, outraised the incumbent last quarter according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. Spalding pulled in nearly $384,000, as compared to $289,000 for Wasserman Schultz. Spalding ended the period with just over $94,000 in cash on hand. That’s about one-eighth of Wasserman Schultz’s cash on hand total.

Wasserman Schultz courted $3,000 in donations last quarter from former Orlando Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy. The federal donation cap of $2,900 applies to each election, the Primary and the General, meaning individuals can donate up to $5,800 in a single cycle.

Van Gundy’s most recent coaching stint was with the New Orleans Pelicans. He has remained politically active in Florida in recent years, however.

The American Federation of Teachers also donated $5,000 to Wasserman Schultz’s campaign. The GuideWell Mutual Holding Corporation, a health care company, also donated $5,000, as did Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits PAC.

So far, Wasserman Schultz is unopposed on the Democratic side in the race for Florida’s 23rd Congressional District. In addition to Spalding, Republican candidates Jeffrey Olson, Saad Suleman and Rubin Young have filed paperwork seeking to challenge Wasserman Schultz in the General Election.

Only Spalding’s fundraising report was available as of publication. Much of Spalding’s donations came from small-dollar donors, according to the FEC filings. Nearly $287,000 of her $384,000 raised were classified as “unitemized” individual donations. The FEC does not require campaigns to list donors whose aggregate donation amounts sit under $200.

“Our campaign has been blessed and humbled with the incredible and overwhelming support it has received from Americans across the country, who have given as little as $1 to defeat Progressive Democrats like Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz,” said Sean Williams, Spalding’s campaign treasurer.

CD 23 is mostly located in southern Broward County but stretches along the east coast of northern Miami-Dade County as well. The district includes all or parts of Davie, Hollywood, Pembroke Pines, Sunrise and Weston in Broward County. The district also runs down to parts of Miami-Dade including Aventura and Surfside, the site of last month’s building collapse which has killed at least 97 people as of publication.

While Spalding’s fundraising numbers are impressive, she’ll be facing an uphill battle if she emerges from the GOP primary and secures a rematch next November. Wasserman Schultz defeated Spalding 58%-42% last November. Wasserman Schultz has secured at least 56% of the vote each of the last four cycles.

Candidates and political committees faced a Thursday deadline to report all financial activity through June 30.