Joy Goff-Marcil opens Senate bid with $17K fundraising month

Democratic Rep. Joy Goff-Marcil opened her challenge to Sen. Jason Brodeur in the new Senate District 10 by raising $17,648 for her campaign in March.

In the only other highly contested Senate race across Central Florida, Democratic Reps. Geraldine Thompson of Orlando and Kamia Brown of Ocoee each reported modest fundraising in March. Both want the open seat in the new Senate District 15 in northwestern Orange County.

The first-month amount reported by Goff-Marcil, posted this week by the Division of Elections, might be modest for many Senate races. Yet it represents the largest monthly haul she has ever managed, counting her successful 2018 and 2020 House campaigns and her now-abandoned 2022 re-election bid through February.

Brodeur, the Sanford Republican seeking re-election, reported collecting only $2,525 in March. However, he has never had problems raising large amounts of money for campaigns and sits on more than $100,000.

SD 10 is likely to be a battlefield in 2022.

SD 10 will now cover Seminole County and a portion of north-central Orange County, including part of Winter Park and all of Goff-Marcil’s hometown of Maitland.

The old district stretched from Seminole northward into Volusia County, instead of southward into Orange. Consequently, it had a slight Republican lean. The new district may have a slight Democratic lean, based on voting in the past two General Elections.

In previous races, Goff-Marcil was easily outspent by Republican opponents, but won comfortably in the 2018 and 2020 elections. Brodeur overwhelmed his Democratic opponent in spending in 2020, but won a tight contest.

Goff-Marcil’s $17,658 is her whole kitty for now. She zeroed-out her old House re-election account, spending or donating the remaining $39,000 in that fund in March. Much of the money, about $24,000, went back to the Florida Democratic Party.

Goff-Marcil’s Senate account received $2,639 back from the Florida Democratic Party, plus 12 maximum-amount $1,000 checks from individuals and other organizations. That includes Ruth’s List, the group supporting Democratic women candidates.

Brodeur enters April having raised $181,387 overall, and holding $104,895 in the bank.

Brodeur’s campaign also received $13,560 in in-kind polling from the Florida Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee.

He has two independent political committees. Neither of them raised any money in March, but both are flush. Citizens for Solutions had collected about $389,500 since its founding in early 2021, and entered April with about $296,000 in the bank on April 1. Freedom and Liberty Fund has raised $47,000, and had about $35,000 in the bank.

The other Central Florida contest shaping up for a battle this year is SD 15, covering an area represented by Democratic Sen. Randolph Bracy, who is running for Congress rather than re-election.

There, Thompson reported raising $8,000 in March, giving her about $20,240 in hand as of March 31.

Brown reported raising only $375 in March. Overall, she has raised $102,800, and came into April with about $67,000 in the bank.

Elsewhere:

— Republican Dennis Baxley of Ocala is expected to file to run in the new Lake County Senate District 13, rather than in the northern portion of the district he now represents. He will find a new Democratic opponent there but is still filed to run in the old Senate District 12.

Baxley did not report any campaign finance activity in March. To date he had raised $45,259, and entered April with about $27,000 in the bank.

Democrat Stephanie Dukes of Clermont redesignated her candidacy to run for the Senate, instead of running for the House District 32 seat. Dukes raised only $25 in March, and has raised just $1,014 to date, including money transferred from her House campaign fund. She had about half of that in the bank on April 1.

— With the withdrawal of Republican Rep. Rene Plasencia as a candidate, Democratic Sen. Linda Stewart of Orlando now has a clear field in Senate District 17, covering eastern Orange County. For March, Stewart reported no financial activity in her campaign, which still is listed for the old SD 13. She has raised $75,050 and has about $67,000 in the bank.

— Democratic Sen. Victor Torres of Orlando has moved his candidacy to Senate District 25. The district covers part of southern Orange County, including his home, plus all of Osceola County. He has no competition yet. Torres reported no fundraising in March. To date, he had raised $65,900 and had about $51,000 in the bank on April 1.

— Republican Sen. Tom Wright of New Smyrna Beach is the only candidate in Senate District 8, covering northern Brevard County and Volusia County. Wright reported no fundraising in March. He had raised $59,787 to date, and had about $28,000 in the bank at the end of March.

— Republican Debbie Mayfield of Indialantic is the only candidate in Senate District 19, covering the rest of Brevard County. She also reported no fundraising in March. Through March 31, she had raised $216,162, and had about $69,000 in the bank on April 1.