With a Year To Go, Clay Candidates Have Already Collected $300,000 from Donors
Sheriff Cook's Campaign Accounts for Nearly Half of It
Unless you’re hiding under a rock, you’ve probably been made aware that 2024 is an election year. Much fuss has been made about races at the state and national levels, but funds are already pouring into the coffers of local candidates as well.
Through the end of September 2023, $336,080 has been donated to candidates running for office in Clay County. Sheriff Michelle Cook leads the fundraising race, accepting $144,560 in campaign contributions. Superintendent David Broskie is in second place with $71,925. Next on the list is Supervisor of Elections Chris Chambless, whose total is $45,733.
One thing to look for in any election cycle is the amount of donations from Political Action Committees, known as PACs. These entities funnel money between candidates and races and are harder to trace than individual or business contributions. PACs have contributed $41,250 across the races in Clay.
Sheriff Cook has received the largest PAC contributions, totaling $20,250. The PAC donating the most money across races in Clay is First Coast Conservatives, operated by lawyer and former state senator Rob Bradley.
Businesses from all over the county and state have contributed $63,276 to local candidates, with Sheriff Cook again taking the largest portion with $33,700. While contributions came from various businesses, Judson Sapp’s company, W J Sapp & Son, was the largest contributor across all races. Sapp’s company donated to Jim Renninger, John Sgromolo, and Michelle Cook. Sapp hosts Sheriff Cook’s podcast, ‘Never Off Duty.’
The majority of money pouring into Clay County political coffers came from individuals. The main recipient was, you guessed, Sheriff Michelle Cook. The $84.806 received by Cook was nearly double what was received by David Broskie, who was second on the list with $48,075.
The individual donating the most money was Jim Horne, a former politician who once served as Florida’s Commissioner of Education. Individual contributors must list their occupations when donating, and the top three occupations listed were ‘retired,’ ‘law enforcement,’ and attorney.
So far, the only candidate with no contributions listed was former Sheriff Darryl Daniels. Daniels announced his candidacy shortly before the last reporting deadline.
The next mandatory reporting date for candidates is in January 2024. The next batch of reports will cover the last quarter of 2023. Clay News & Views will provide updated analysis as new data is available.