Marucci Guzmán raises almost $80K for Dem Primary in HD 35

Marucci Guzman. Image via campaign.

Marucci Guzmán reported nearly $80,000 in contributions for a coming House District 35 Special Election.

The Orlando Democrat collected a total of $77,942 between the official campaign account and her political committee, Friends of Marucci Guzmán. Reports show that includes $56,442 in her personal account, while the committee collected another $21,500.

“I could not be more humbled by the support of the many generous contributors who have invested in our race, giving us the resources to communicate our message directly with voters,” Guzmán said. “It means so much to me that people all around the state recognize the huge opportunity we have to flip this seat, and that they’ve invested in my campaign to help me be the Democratic nominee to do it.”

In total, Guzmán reported 194 donations. She also reported that the Florida House Democratic Campaign Committee provided $27,500 in polling in kind.

The Executive Director of Latino Leadership announced her candidacy in July for the open seat. She’s running now in a Nov. 7 Democratic Primary, facing Rishi Bagga and Tom Keen. Spectrum News will host a debate between the three candidates on Wednesday.

Marucci is running to succeed former Rep. Fred Hawkins, a St. Cloud Republican who resigned his seat to become President of South Florida State College.

She’s the only Democratic candidate in the race who did not run for the seat last year against Hawkins. She was also the last to enter. That makes the quarterly report published today the first she has filed. She had announced raising $40,000 in July.

Hawkins in November won an election against Bagga by about 10 percentage points, as Florida Republicans overperformed statewide. But Democrats see a chance to flip the vacant seat in a Jan. 16 Special Election.

In the 2020 Presidential Election, nearly 52% of the district’s voters supported Joe Biden over Donald Trump for President. Democrats hope to rally voters during a Presidential Election year to take the seat. As of book closing for the 2022 elections, the district served as home to 40,746 no-party voters, compared to 40,464 registered Democrats and 37,534 Republicans.

Her reports also show significant support from Democratic leaders in the state, including a $1,000 donation from Rep. Allison Tant, a former Florida Democratic Party Chair. The Florida Leadership Council also donated $1,000, as did Ruth’s List and Progress for All. The Florida Leadership Council also gave $6,000 to her committee, while the Democratic Strategies Network gave $10,000. Lobbyist Ronald Book gave the committee $2,500.