After a night -- and day -- of counting votes, three fundraising front-runners proved what could be the golden rule of politics: Whoever has the gold, rules.

When all precincts were counted Wednesday, Broward County Commissioner John Rodstrom, Broward sheriff candidate Scott Israel and state Senate candidate Eleanor Sobel were poised to hold their razor-thin leads to claim victory and avoid recounts.

Each candidate led their opponents in fundraising throughout the campaign, and those watching the hotly contested races say money might have made the difference, allowing candidates to stuff voters' mailboxes and flood the airwaves with ads.

''When you have the most money, it provides you with additional opportunities,'' said Mitch Ceasar, Broward Democratic Party chairman.

Rodstrom, an incumbent county commissioner, learned Wednesday that he would hold his narrow lead over Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Carlton Moore, dodging a recount.

Rodstrom, who also was facing Davie Town Council member Bryan Caletka and contractor Robert McKinzie, spent more than any of his opponents.

Rodstrom faces a write-in candidate in November.

In the Broward sheriff's race, Israel, North Bay Village police chief, slid past Richard ''Rick'' Lemack by a few hundred votes, winning the right to challenge sitting Republican Sheriff Al Lamberti in November.

Israel and Lemack had similar backgrounds as the two local law enforcement veterans in the race -- Israel as a longtime Fort Lauderdale police officer and Lemack as a longtime Hollywood police officer, who later became the city's assistant city manager.

But Israel spent about $100,000 more than Lemack, which helped him spread his message through brochures and TV ads, despite some last-minute attacks surrounding his party affiliation and personnel record. And Israel's name might have given him an added edge.

In Century Village in Pembroke Pines -- home to a large Democratic Jewish voting bloc -- his supporters distributed Israeli flags encouraging voters in that Jewish stronghold to ``Support Israel.''

LEMACK'S ROOTS

The Century Village precincts voted for Israel.

Lemack mentioned that he grew up in a Jewish household in a campaign brochure, but his Jewish roots may not have been as obvious.

In the bare-knuckle race for the Southeast Broward Senate seat held by term-limited Minority Leader Steve Geller, Sobel edged out fellow Democrats Ken Gottlieb and Tim Ryan by a few hundred votes and will face a write-in candidate in November.

All three candidates were former state representatives and came to the campaign with similar political credentials.

But some wondered whether Sobel's status as the race's only woman would help her stand out.

And Sobel, who compared herself to Eleanor Roosevelt and World War II icon Rosie the Riveter in campaign ads, said she felt the political stars were aligning when she saw elections officials would be tabulating results on the anniversary of women's suffrage and on the day Hillary Clinton addressed the Democratic National Convention.

But political observers say money likely played a bigger role.

Like Israel, Sobel spent most of the race leading her opponents in fundraising, bringing in close to $425,000 -- about $75,000 more than her nearest opponent.

Sobel got another financial boost after a third-party group linked to the Florida Medical Association chose to back her and attack her opponents.

MAILINGS SENT

The electioneering communication organization, called People for a Better Florida Fund, raised more than $1.5 million, which was used to send more than a dozen mailings and supplement Sobel's network TV ads with attacks on cable.

And even though another third-party group joined the fight against Sobel, the pro-Sobel forces still had a $1.2 million financial edge.

Said Geller: ``She was on network TV, cable TV. . . . It certainly had an effect.''

And while the mudslinging repelled some voters, the mail campaign and TV ads, combined with a massive door-knocking effort, helped Sobel siphon off enough voters from her opponents' old legislative districts.

''People got to know me through television, telephone calls and knocking on doors,'' Sobel said. ``People knew me.''

Miami Herald staff writers Adam H. Beasley and Dan Christensen contributed to this report.

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