Jesse Scheckner
State Attorneys Harold Pryor of Broward County, Katherine Fernandez Rundle of Miami-Dade County and Dennis Ward of Monroe County all just secured four more years in office after no one filed to challenge them.
Each won by default at noon, the deadline for candidates seeking federal, State Attorney, Public Defender and judicial offices to qualify by fee or petition.
Pryor holds onto the office he first won in 2020, when he outpaced seven fellow Democrats in a crowded Primary and defeated Republican challenger Gregg Rossman by 28 percentage points to succeed Mike Satz.
Satz declined to run for office after serving as State Attorney for 44 straight years.
This year, Pryor enjoyed sweeping support at the federal, state and local levels, including nods from three of his 2020 opponents. He also amassed more than $180,000 to defend his job. Most of his donations came from fellow lawyers.
He told Florida Politics he is “truly humbled and honored” to win re-election unopposed and expressed gratitude for the strong backing he received this election cycle.
“Four years ago, I committed to keeping our community safe while seeking real criminal justice reform and to work for fairness, equality, and justice for all in our criminal justice system,” he said by text. “I believe my office has effectively implemented policies and programs that have done just that, and I’m looking forward to continuing that work for another four years.”
Rundle, meanwhile, won a seventh consecutive term as Miami-Dade’s top prosecutor after raising more than $800,000 between her campaign and political committee, including $170,000 in refundable self-loans.
She called her victory “a testament to our continued work in the community and my longstanding commitment to always putting public safety first and seeking justice for victims (and) fairness for all.”
“I look forward to our continued work in my next term on human trafficking initiatives as Miami-Dade experiences global attention, a promise to hold accountable those who break the public trust and take on violent criminals who prey on our children, seniors and most vulnerable residents,” she said.
“We will also remain vigilant with our Hate Crimes prosecutors as the rise of antisemitism is deeply troubling. Our message is clear — if you target anyone for their religious beliefs, race or who they love, you will be met with the full force of the law and held accountable.”
Ward, who oversees an office in Key West, is heading to a third consecutive term in what is his second stint as Monroe State Attorney. He also served as State Attorney from 2008 to 2012. In the interim, he worked in private practice as a criminal defense lawyer.
He was alone this year among the three unopposed incumbents who qualified for the race by petition signatures, according to the Florida Division of Elections.
Notably, he also didn’t do any fundraising or spending. He reported only receiving $270 worth of in-kind aid from his treasurer for printing and copying petition papers.
Seven people qualified Friday for a race to succeed Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg: Democrats Alexcia Cox, Gregg Lerman, Rolando Silva and Craig Williams; Republicans Forrest Freedman and Sam Stern; and no-party candidate Adam Farkas.
