Jesse Scheckner
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s re-election effort crossed the $3.5 million fundraising mark last quarter, when she turned in another strong round of gains to hold onto the county’s top elected office.
Between July 1 and Sept. 30, Levine Cava collected $468,000 between her campaign account and political committee, Our Democracy — more than double what her three challengers raised in Q3.
The haul pushed her total fundraising since winning the mayoralty in November 2020 to $3.57 million.
By the beginning of this month, she had about $2.2 million left.
Levine Cava received more than 360 personal checks in Q3. The biggest was a $75,000 contribution from her mother, Lois Levine. She also took a $20,000 check from Nicholas Swerdlow, Vice President of Coconut Grove-based development firm Swerdlow Group, which is seeking county land in the Poinciana and South Dade areas.
Many other real estate interests invested in the Mayor as well. Kendall Association I, a subsidiary of private residential developer GL Homes, gave $25,000.
Krome Grove, a limited liability company owned by real estate firm The Easton Group gave $10,000. So did Broward-based infrastructure engineering firm CES Consultants, Miami-based 13th Floor Investments and Miami construction engineering company NV2A Group.
Associated Industries of Florida, a business group representing major Florida companies such as Florida Crystals, U.S. Sugar, for-profit hospital company HCA Healthcare and Florida Power & Light, also gave $10,000. A Stronger Florida, a political committee chaired by Rubin Turnbull and Associates Director of Operations Celeste Camm, gave the same.
Miami-Dade Commissioners Danielle Cohen Higgins and Micky Steinberg chipped in $1,000 each through their respective political committees. Pinecrest Council member Anna Hochkammer donated $1,000 directly.
Levine Cava spent close to $250,000 in Q3. Roughly a third went to Edge Communications, a Miami firm run by consultant Christian Ulvert, whom the Mayor tapped as her senior adviser and chief strategist in March.
She paid $20,500 to the firm of her finance director, Gregory Goddard. Media consultant Michael Worley and Clair VanSusteren, Levine Cava’s Communications Director, got about $10,000 each.
As has been the case in prior reporting periods, Levine Cava contributed to her party, aligned advocacy groups and political allies. She gave $50,000 to the Florida Democratic Party and $5,000 to the national party.
She also paid $10,000 for a sponsorship of abortion rights group Ruth’s List Florida, which endorsed her in April, and gave $1,000 to the political committee of Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins.
After months of hinting at a run, Republican Miami Lakes Mayor Manny Cid jumped into the race for county Mayor on Sept. 1 and wasted little time building up his campaign war chest.
Cid collected $116,000 in September between his campaign account and political committee. He also raised $5,000 in July through a pair of checks from Presidente Supermarket.
Close to 70 people donated to Cid in Q3. So did more than 40 companies, including Layer 8 Solutions, an education IT solutions company headquartered in Hialeah. Companies linked to Layer 8 gave $2,000 more and its owner, Antonio Fernandez-Rives, gave another $1,000.
Florida Clinical Research, a clinical trials operation in Miami Lakes, donated $10,000, as did a subsidiary of Prestige Companies, a Miami Lakes-based real estate firm.
After spending about $26,000 on consulting, media and donation processing fees in Q3, Cid had $123,000 remaining in his coffers by Sept. 30.
Anti-communism YouTuber Alex Otaola amassed $62,500 in the quarter through more than 2,600 donations from people and a $2,645 self-loan.
Four local businesses — a law firm, doctor’s office, photography company and jeweler — gave between $300 and $800 apiece.
He’s raised more than $160,000 since filing to run in April. Of that, he had $128,000 left by the end of the quarter after spending $11,500 on treasury services, web services, software, marketing, a campaign training and fundraising event, and campaign materials.
Four of every 10 dollars he spent paid for T-shirts, hats and yard signs.
A Republican and first-time candidate for elected office, Otaola enjoys support from an electioneering communications organization (ECO) called Miami-Dade a Communist Free Zone, which in June tapped political operative Roger Stone as a consultant.
The ECO has raised nearly $33,000 since launching in March, but reported no activity in Q3. It has less than $5,000 to spend, according to its filings with the county.
Miguel “el Skipper” Quitnero, a Democratic trapeze artist who decided to enter the race in March after repeated disputes with Miami-Dade code enforcement authorities over his home-based circus school, raised about $2,300 in Q3.
His gains came through 38 individuals and a pair of self-loans totaling $51. After spending $765, almost all of it on a new campaign website, he had about $2,600 left by October.
Quintero tried to spend $582 more for security services by off-duty Miami-Dade Police officers at a Hialeah fundraising event in late September, but the department’s Northside Station refused him service and refunded him the money.
Speaking for the department, Det. Angel Rodriguez told Florida Politics that outstanding violations cited at Quintero’s home, where the fundraiser was held, prohibited off-duty police protective services there.
Florida Politics contacted the district for more information and will update this report upon receipt of it.
All candidates for Miami-Dade Mayor will compete against one another in the Aug. 20, 2024, Primary Election, regardless of party affiliation.
If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, the two top vote-earners will compete in a runoff culminating in the Nov. 5, 2024, General Election.
Candidates faced a Tuesday deadline to report all campaign finance activity through Sept. 30.
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This report was updated with information from the Miami-Dade Police Department about Quintero’s fundraising event.
