David Jolly’s still losing the fundraising battle to Byron Donalds. But he says he’s winning the war

Major money is finally flowing into Democratic gubernatorial nominee David Jolly’s campaign. Even though Republican Byron Donalds continues to outpace him, Jolly says he’s not worried and that the trend is with him. The week ending Oct. 2 was Jolly’s biggest week of fundraising yet, topping the $2.3 million he brought in the week after his Primary win. His “Florida 2026” political committee raised more than $1.9 million. He raised almost $800,000 through his campaign account, including about $254,000 in state matching funds. “We have continued to see fundraising improve dramatically. There are some days now where we have $1 million days, not because of the national party, but because of singular donors or because our small-dollar donor campaign is shattering records. You can see it in the state matching funds; we are at two times to three times what Byron is bringing in because our small-dollar donor community is really growing,” Jolly said at a news conference in Tallahassee. Hedge fund manager Henry Laufer of Manalapan led all contributors with a $1 million donation on Oct. 1, while the Charles R. Wall Revocable Trust of Aspen contributed $250,000 on Sept. 30. Jolly closed the week with nearly $4 million in his political committee and a little more than $2 million in his campaign account. He spent more than $2.15 million that week to counter the paid media onslaught from Donalds. Between “Friends of Byron Donalds” and his campaign account, the Naples Congressman raised more than $5.8 million during the same week. He has reported raising more than $140 million to date and closed the filing period with nearly $37 million on hand. Donalds’ biggest donors included GOPAC Election Fund and United Group Underwriters LLC at $500,000 each. Associated Industries of Florida also gave $500,000 through four affiliated committees. Fighting for Florida’s Families and A Stronger Florida gave $300,000 each, and the Florida Chamber of Commerce Alliance and the Republican State Leadership Committee gave $250,000 each. Donalds’ committee inflows have not slowed down. The political committee’s website shows more than $1.5 million in donations recorded between the close of the state report and Oct. 6, including another $1 million from Fighting for Florida’s Families. That doesn’t faze Jolly either. Indeed, he paints the fundraising as less a sign of strength than of desperation. “Byron is ringing the fire alarm with all of his major donors. We have heard from them. A lot of his major donors are getting second and third time asks from Byron because he is worried about his finances with three weeks to go. A lot of them are actually coming to us trying to hedge their bets. We do not really play that game. We tell people they are invited to the table, but they do not get to buy their way in,” Jolly said. Jolly believes his campaign “may have $15 million to commit in the last three weeks to paid communications and field operations, and Donalds may have $30 million to $35 million.” “Listen, he has spent $100 million. We have spent less than $5 million on paid communications, and this race is tied,” he said. “When you throw us into a three-week environment with undecided voters where he is only going to outspend us 2-to-1, I like that environment a lot.” The post David Jolly’s still losing the fundraising battle to Byron Donalds. But he says he’s winning the war appeared first on Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..