by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
Mike Weinstein and City Council member Lad Daniels both raised over $60,000 during the first quarter of the year. Quarterly financial statements were due in the state elections office by the end of the day Tuesday. Daniels is running for State Rep. Mark Mahon’s Dist. 16 seat and reported campaign contributions of $64,550. Weinstein is seeking State Rep. Don Davis’s Dist. 19 and reported contributions totaling $65,800.
Neither Mahon nor Davis can seek re-election due to term limits.
“It was more than two times what I estimated. We have quietly raised that much money,” said Daniels, a two-term member of Council who will be out of office June 30. “We wanted to see if there was support. I have just been calling people and asking for their support. We have not had any fundraisers.
“It’s been a very quiet campaign and I am very pleased with the response I have gotten from Tallahassee.”
Daniels has drawn opposition from attorney Charles McBurney. McBurney opened his account early last week.
Weinstein has only been seeking support for about a month also. In addition to gathering over $65,000 in contributions, Weinstein has also gotten the public backing of Jacksonville Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver, Zurich Insurance Chairman Tom Petway and several others with name recognition across the state.
“I’m very pleased with what we’ve done,” he said. “We have had no major fundraisers and we’ve only been raising money for a few weeks. It’s been a quiet couple of weeks campaigning.”
Weinstein is the president of Take Stock in Children, a state-wide organization that will present him the opportunity over the next 18 months to travel the entire state on behalf of both his job and his campaign. It doesn’t hurt to have support in Tallahassee, either. Speaker of the House Marco Rubio, Speaker-elect Ray Sansom and others have expressed their support for Weinstein.
“The week of June 11, we are having a big event here. Ray Sansom will be here and so will Dean Cannon,” said Weinstein, adding the campaign is going well. “I haven’t heard any rumors or discussions of others running in the district.”
Weinstein said he’d like raise between $250,000 and $300,000.
“That’s the high end of a typical House race. That much would discourage others from joining the race,” he said. “The intricacies and activities of a campaign are a year off. For now, I am looking for commitments and endorsements and support.”
Daniels has known for years he wanted to serve in the State Legislature. However, the stars never seemed to align.
In the mid-1980s, Tommy Hazouri was in the process of leaving the Legislature to run for mayor. At the time, Daniels was in the real estate business and a run at the Legislature wasn’t economically feasible.
“The real estate market had just turned dead south,” said Daniels. “I had to take care of my business.”
In 1999, Don Davis announced his intention to seek the Dist. 18 seat. Daniels’ friendship with Davis ended thoughts of running.
“I would never run against Don Davis,” said Daniels. “He had earned his spurs and we are good friends. He had just spent 12 years on City Council.
“I got talked into running for City Council, but I never lost my determination to go to Tallahassee. Mark Mahon is term-limited and this is the time to take advantage of that.”
In addition to being a Council member, Daniels is also president of the First Coast Manufacturers Association. Between his professional career and his civil service, Daniels has spent plenty of time in Tallahassee over the past decade and made many contacts. He feels that time and those contacts will serve him well should he win in 2008.
“My background in local politics will help,” he said. “I have done a lot from economic development policy to tax policy. Then there’s healthcare. We have to do something about that.”
Daniels and McBurney have opened accounts and both understand this could be a long race. Mahon has applied to fill the vacancy in the Fourth Judicial Circuit created by the retirement of Circuit Judge A.C. Soud.
“It’s a marathon and we are gearing up for that,” said Daniels. “The experts, those that run campaigns for a living, they tell me I’m late getting in. I suspect that they have told Charles the same thing.
“The last six months will be more intense than the first six months.”
Other campaign numbers from other candidates for state office:
• Angela Corey — State Attorney — $99,177.69
• U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns — $0 — Stearns filed to run for re-election March 6
• State Sen. Tony Hill — $13,690
• State Sen. Stephen Wise — $38,228.82
• State Rep. Jennifer Carroll — $0 — Carroll filed to run for re-election April 3
• State Rep. Dist 14 — Pat Lockett-Felder — $0
• State Rep. Audrey Gibson — $2,000
• State Rep. Dist. 17 — Lake Ray — $0 — Ray filed to run April 2