Lauren Book raises $13K in August from four donors

Image via Lauren Book Senate office.

Sen. Lauren Book raised $13,000 in August for her campaign to continue representing Senate District 32 in Broward County.

Compared to her massive war chest, that’s a relatively modest haul for the Plantation Democrat, who will begin her first Session this January as Senate Democratic Leader. Between her campaign and her political committee, Leadership for Florida, Book has about $2.3 million in cash on hand, according to campaign documents.

Her sole opponent, Diana Bivona Belviso, a Davie Republican, reports zero cash donations since announcing her candidacy in March 2020. The Pembroke Pines Charter School civics teacher shows $395 worth of in-kind donations in the last 17 months of campaigning,

Book’s campaign received $1,000 from John Milledge, a Fort Lauderdale lawyer who also lobbies for the NHL’s Florida Panthers. Her campaign also received $1,000 from both Walt Disney Travel Company and Walt Disney Gift Card Services. For her political committee, the sole donation in August was $10,000 from the state’s teachers’ union, the Florida Education Association.

Her spending was nominal. She paid just $206 in August for accounting and e-commerce fees in her campaign account.

Book first joined the Senate after winning a 2016 contest in Senate District 32 after redistricting. That election was only for a two-year term, however. Book won reelection in 2018 for her first full term. That allows her to seek another four-year term in 2022 without running into the state’s term limits.

Book drew no opposition in her two previous bids. She made her name in the state well before her time in the Senate. The daughter of high-profile lobbyist Ron Book, she founded the nonprofit organization Lauren’s Kids in 2007, which advocates on behalf of victims of child sex abuse. Book herself is a survivor.

Book’s district covers portions of Broward County including Weston, Davie, and Cooper City. Candidates face a Friday deadline to report all August fundraising activity.