Janelle Irwin Taylor
Rep. Blaise Ingoglia raised more than $215,000 in July between his official campaign account and political committees, Government Gone Wild and Friends of Blaise Ingoglia, for his bid for Senate District 10. The haul brings his total cash available to $1.42 million.
“Our campaign for the state Senate continues to build momentum and is off to an incredible start. Over the next year, I will continue to work hard and not take this race for granted,” said Ingoglia, who is running to succeed Senate President Wilton Simpson. “I will continue to fight ‘big tech’ censorship, protect the integrity of our elections, stand up for our second amendment rights and make sure Critical Race Theory never finds its way into Florida schools.”
Ingoglia has served in Florida House District 35 since 2014 and is facing term limits in 2022, prompting him to seek a seat in the upper chamber. Simpson also faces term limits in 2022.
Ingoglia served two terms as chair of the Republican Party of Florida from 2014 to 2018 and currently serves as chair of the Hernando County Republican Executive Committee.
He so far faces former Sen. John Legg in the GOP Primary. As of the end of June, Legg had just $147,592 available in his official campaign account. Legg has not announced finance activity for July, but as of June 30, he hadn’t posted any financial activity in his campaign account since April 2016.
Lecanto Republican Rep. Ralph Massullo and Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco, a Republican of New Port Richey, are also considering a run in SD 10. Though they have not yet filed for the race, both men have been raising money through political committees.
Nocco has about $65,000 in his committee, Families for a Safer Future, though none of it was collected this year — the last report to show income landed in September. Massullo, meanwhile, has a little over $124,000 in his committee, Better Lives for Floridians. That includes $83,500 raised in 2021. Massullo also has about $28,000 in his reelection campaign for House District 34 that he could transfer to a Senate campaign if one materializes.
As with Legg, the Nocco’s and Massullo most up-to-date numbers are from June.
Ingoglia has not yet posted his July financials to the Florida Division of Elections, and his latest numbers were provided directly by the campaign. More information about donors and expenses will become available when those reports are posted.
His reported earnings came in less than two weeks since filing for SD 10. Ingoglia entered the race on July 19.
“As past Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, I worked hand in hand with grassroots conservatives to deliver Florida for President Trump and Gov. DeSantis, and I will continue to work with those same grassroots voters to win this campaign for the Florida Senate. No one will work harder to stop the Radical Left’s agenda than me,” Ingoglia said.
Ingoglia has been influential in the Legislature. This year, he was the House sponsor for bills implementing more restrictive election laws and cracking down on Big Tech. Ingoglia has also been instrumental in past election laws, including provisions that allowed ballot drop boxes.
SD 10 encompasses Hernando and Citrus counties and portions of Pasco County. With 46% of voters registered as Republicans, compared to 27% as either Democrats or independents, the GOP holds a strong advantage in the district. However, 2022 marks a redistricting year, meaning that balance is subject to change.
Legg was first elected to the Florida House in 2004, serving there eight years. He was elected to the Florida Senate in 2012, but court-ordered redistricting forced him to make a difficult decision in 2016: Run for reelection and challenge Simpson, who was on track to be the Senate President, or step down at the end of his term.
He chose the latter.
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Florida Politics reporter Renzo Downey contributed to this report.
