It has become common for mayoral campaigns to climb up into the millions, but the Miami-Dade Commission candidates are also raking up record amounts of cash this year — most for races that have no challengers so far.
In between them, the six incumbents up for re-election have a total of $1.7 million collected in contributions as of May 31. Much of that is fueled by new rules passed by legislators last year that doubled the maximum amount county candidates could collect from $500 per donor to $1,000. This is the first election impacted by that higher threshold.
Leading the pack is Vice Chairwoman Lynda Bell, who is the only one facing any real challenge. Bell has amassed a $450,000 war chest. And that does not include her PACs and ECOs. We already new that the Good Government Now, with nearly $140,000, is helping her, at least paying for the TV ad about her challenger being a carpetbagger. But there are likely others that will come out of the woodwork right around now.
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But Bell’s challenger, social services professional and political newbie Daniella Levine Cava, is not too far behind with $329,000. Looks like this race all by itself, including PACs, is going to surpass the million dollar mark.
But then you add the other commissioners and it looks like the county elections is going to pass the $2 million mark — that’s with no mayoral race and only one true, real challenge. I mean, Commissioner Jean Monestime is facing two opponents, but neither has much steam. One of them is former Commissioner Dorrin Rolle, who Monestime easily beat in 2010, when he had far less than the $398,000 he’s collected so far this year. Rolle, on the other hand, has $26,500 in contributions.
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