Whitney Fox has the fundraising momentum, but Anna Paulina Luna still leads in cash on hand

Did Whitney Fox make a huge misstep amid Helene prep? Image via Whitney Fox for Congress.

Whitney Fox, a Democrat running for Florida’s 13th Congressional District, has shown positive momentum in her bid to challenge incumbent Republican Anna Paulina Luna, outraising her GOP foe in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Fox raised about $204,000 during the fourth quarter, according to campaign finance records with the Federal Election Commission. That’s compared to the nearly $165,000 Luna raised during the same period.

However, Luna retains a major spending advantage, with more than triple the cash on hand at nearly $550,000 to Fox’s $151,000.

To get to Luna, Fox will have to emerge victorious from a crowded field in the Democratic Primary. She’s well on her way to making that happen. Her closest opponent in fundraising is Mark Weinkrantz, but he’s raised less than $44,000, including a substantial self-investment.

John Liccione has raised less than $25,000 and Peter Owen just $110. Sabrina Bousbar, who as a former Joe Biden administration staffer will likely wage a competitive campaign, has not yet filed any campaign finance documents because she entered the race after the new year.

“We are incredibly grateful for the overwhelming support our campaign has received,” Fox said.

“The people of Pinellas County are fed up with the chaos in Washington and Luna’s self-serving political games. That’s why we’re organizing in every corner across the district to talk about the issues that matter to voters — like the high cost of groceries and rent and protecting a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions. It’s time we rally together to unseat Luna this November.”

Fox is also dominating the endorsement race in the CD 13 Democratic Primary, with nods already from former U.S. Rep. and current U.S. Senate candidate Debbie Mucarsel-Powell; former state Reps. Adam Hattersley and Margaret Good; Pinellas County Commissioner Rene Flowers; Largo City Commissioners Jamie Robinson and Michael Smith; Dunedin City Commissioner Jeff Gow; St. Petersburg City Council members Deborah Figgs–Sanders and Lisset Hanewicz; and the National Women’s Political Caucus.

Fox announced her candidacy in October, just after she resigned from her position as Communications Director for the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority, where she ran communications strategy, public policy advisory and other executive functions within the transit agency. Fox was one of the main architects of the SunRunner Bus Rapid Transit line in St. Petersburg, which has outperformed ridership expectations within its first year.

Fox also, in that role, had to work with leaders in both political parties to further transit priorities — that includes at the city, county, state and federal levels.

But she’ll be at a disadvantage in the district. Luna won the district, which covers much of Pinellas County, in 2022 amid a red wave in Florida after the Legislature approved new congressional maps that shifted the voter registration advantage from favoring Democrats to favoring Republicans. Luna ran previously in 2020, losing to then-incumbent Democrat Charlie Crist, who did not seek re-election in 2022 and instead ran for Governor.

The district, drawn to exclude parts of south Pinellas County and include northern parts of the county, now leans red with nearly 199,000 Republican voters to just 151,573 Democrats.

Cook Political Report lists the district as a competitive race, but with a distinct advantage for Republicans at R+6 and likely Republican.

Fox is looking for an opening in a district currently represented by a freshman member of Congress who has often stood with the more extreme conservatives on Capitol Hill, including Matt Gaetz.