Old and new PACs start to raise, trade funds again to prepare for 2024 election

February 5, 2024 admin Florida, Government, Local News, Miami, Politics

Several political action committees had good quarters at the end of the year, according to the latest campaign finance reports filed in January, ending months of reporting zero contributions in some cases.

Citizens for Justice, a PAC for Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez-Rundle, raised $182,000 between October and November. It hadn’t reported any financial activity since August of 2020. Stuart Miller, co-CEO at Lennar Corporation, gave the biggest gift: $100,000. Real estate developer Michael Wohl gave $20,000 and car mogul Alan Potamkin gave the PAC $25,000, which is more than double the $10K contributed by car mogul Norman Braman. Spice king Joseph Badia gave $10,000.

Citizens for Excellence in Miami-Dade County Government, which is the PAC used by county Commissioner Raquel Regalado, raised $82,500. Almost half of it came in $10,000 checks from lobbyist Les Pantin, real estate developer Michael Swerdlow, Atlantic Pacific Communities — which struck a deal with the county last year to build a mixed use project called Atlantic Station near the Overtown/Lyric Theater Metrorail and real estate investor Arnaud Karsenti, who is developing the Link at Douglas, mixed use towers along the Metrorail.

Education Forward, PC, one of consultant Christian Ulvert‘s many PACs, collected $36,000 — $25,000 from former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, $10,000 from San Francisco tech investor Arthur Rock and $1,000 from wealth management guru Ben Beavers, the only local. This added to the $16,000 collected the prior quarter brings this PAC’s total to $52,000. Who does he have running for the Miami-Dade School Board?

Ulvert’s Our Democracy, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava‘s PAC, raised almost $300,000 in three months. Of that, $25,000 came from NextEra Energy Capital Holdings, one of the world’s biggest investors in power infrastructure (aren’t we are looking to build a new waste to energy plant). Another $20,000 came from Dario Sala, a former professional soccer player who is now in sports manager and head of business development for The Women’s Cup. Kicking in $15,000 is developer Michael Simkins, co-owner of E11even nightclub, and two political committees.

Our Democracy got $10,000 each from HTNB Holdings, a provider of transportation infrastructure, land use attorney Jeffrey Bercow, Sunset Opportunities B2, which operates the Shops at Sunset Place, lobbyist Pantin, real estate investor Brian Sidman, insurance executive Adalberto Sotero, and Insight Street Media, which provides outdoor advertising.

La Alcaldesa‘s team can spend it as fast as they can rake it in, however, with $280,406 in expenses. That includes $28,000 on polling and research and just over $100,000 to Ulvert for consulting.

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Ulvert has another PAC formed last year. Our Voice, Our Future raised $70,000 in the last quarter, in eight checks from four different separate political committees that are also chaired by Ulvert. It’s like a curbside shell game. Follow the ball. Follow the money. (1) New Leadership for Florida collected $67,500 last quarter, including $25K from Simkins, who was apparently feeling generous. (2) Project Freedom & Libertad raised $99,000, including $25K from Indian fashion designer Naeem Khan of New York City and $10K from lobbyist Brian May. (3) Defend Democracy raised $54,000, including $25K from Hunter Gellin, president and CMO of Think Hotel Group and owner of Think Hospitality. (4) Engaged Florida raised $333,500 in three months ending in December. All of it — except for $10K from lobbyist Ron Book, $10,000 from Space Consulting in New York and $5,000 from real estate investor Karsenti — comes from other PACs also chaired by Ulvert. And round and round it goes.

Brand new PACs are also coming to life. Those include:

Miami First Political Committee for Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo was born in December. This is different from Miami First, which is an ECO that raised more than $200K in the last quarter . Only two contributions were reported for the quarter in the new PAC, both tied to LED billboards. One is for $10,000 from Greg Silvershein of Naples, manager of Global Amherst Media, a provider of “digital outdoor advertising assets in major U.S. markets,” and another is for $5,000 from New Tradition Media in New York City, which does the same thing. These donations came just before the city commission is to vote on the legality or limits of LED billboards (more on that later).
Law and Order PC is a new PAC raising money for former Miami Commissioner Joe Sanchez, who is running for Miami-Dade sheriff. Among the biggest donors: $10K each from lobbyist Brian May, gas distributer Max Alvarez and real estate investor Moshe Popack. Former Miami City Manager Joe Arriola gave him $5,000. He also got a lot of money from other PACs, including Miamians for Sensible Government, which has also given $17,500 to former Miami Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, who was suspended after he was arrested for bribery and money laundering.
Citizens for a Safer Community was formed in November to support Rosanna Cordero-Stutz, an assistant director at the Miami-Dade Police Department who is also running for Miami-Dade sheriff. The PAC raised $26,000 in November and December: $11,000 from developer Daniel Berkowitz, $10,000 from Global Media Marketing and $5,000 from venture capitalist Nick Hammerschlag.
Protecting the Right To Vote in Miami-Dade County is chaired by attorney and former State Rep. JC Planas, who is running for Supervisor of Elections so it’s totally on brand. It raised $14,500 from July to September and another $5,850 in the last quarter. Among the donors are car mogul Alan Potamkin, who gave $5,000, Sen. Jason Pizzo, who gave $2,500, real estate developer Jeffrey Berkowitz, who gave $3,000 and Broward County Commissioner Sen. Nan Rich, who gave $500.

Also in play, but showing no activity in the last quarter, is Friends of JC Planas, the PAC formed to help the former state rep win the race for Supervisor of Elections. The sole contribution is a $500,000 loan from mortgage broker Eduardo Fernandez.

Friends of Joe Geller, the former state rep running for Miami-Dade School Board, collected $15,000 in the quarter that ended in September — that’s $10K from political consultant Jeffrey Garcia and $5K from a PAC called Florida for a Stronger Tomorrow. The last quarter, Friends of Joe Geller reported raising $250.

PACs, like candidates, don’t have to file campaign finance reports every month anymore. They report quarterly, now. That means we won’t know more about who’s funding these campaigns until April and then again in July, and then again in October, when it’s too late to make a difference in the August primary and almost too late to make a difference in November.

Thank your local Republican state legislator for that new rule passed last year.