Miami-Dade County Commissioners have raised close to $1 million between them so far for next November’s
election, according to the latest campaign reports filed this week.
The fat cat among los gatos locos at the 111 building is Audrey Edmonson, who has raised $320,000 since starting in March. It includes $16,500 raised in October, even though Edmonson doesn’t have anyone challenging her yet. But maybe she knows something we don’t.
The next biggest booty goes to Dennis Moss — the only commissioner so far to draw an opponent — if you can call him that. Moss collected $25,000 more last month for a total of $298,000. Someone named Rubin Young filed paperwork and opened a campaign account in September, but has not reported any money in or out.
Coming in third place, so far anyway: Commissioner Barbara Jordan with $231,500, including the
$20,000 she got in October. She’s been raising money since April.
Commissioner Xavier Suarez is next with $200,000, which we imagine is less than he expected to make in October with his big gala fundraiser. The month was his best with $94,250, but he saw more than $66,000 out, mostly for the Oct. 10 fete at the Miami Airport Doubletree, including $56,000 for venue and food, $4,000 for sound and DJ, $1,100 for balloons and decorations and $2,000 even planners, including $1,500 for his daughter Carolina.
Commissioner Esteban “Stevie” Bovo had his best month since he started raising funds in January, with an additional $20,000 for a total of $84,700. Almost half of it, or $9,000, came from one single bundling source: A medical/healthcare management firm that also bundled contributions to Mayor Carlos Gimenez. Bovo, too, has no declared challenger.
But while Commissioner Juan Zapata may be in the same unopposed shoes, he is going to have to step up his fundraising because Ladra suspects he will. Zap is going to need more than $3,250 to ward off whoever is run against him by State Rep. Frank Artiles, who ran the Manny Machado against him in 2012, and Mayor Gimenez who Ladra suspects is behind leaking the Harvard story blown out of proportion to the Spanish language media.
After all, it’s still early. There’s a year to go, or nine months if there are more than three candidates. And Ladra is guessing that with the presidential election and the excitement that everyone believes a Hillary-topped ticket will bring, there will be challengers coming out in the next couple of months.
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