Miami Mayor Suarez says committees backing his presidential bid raised over $13 million
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez announced that his presidential campaign and political committees supporting him have raised $13.6 million, though his campaign did not offer a specific breakdown, and a newly released finance report show he raised almost $1 million in direct contributions.
Suarez, an attorney and private-equity executive who is running for the Republican nomination halfway through his second mayoral term, tweeted about fundraising totals Friday afternoon. A finance report posted by his principal campaign committee shortly after his tweet showed he raised $945,450 through June 30. Suarez filed to run June 14.
In his tweet, Suarez combined this number with fundraising from unspecified political action committees supporting him.
“I am extremely pleased to announce that my campaign, which only began a few days before the end of the reporting period, along with the reports made public today by PACs supporting our effort, have raised a total of over 13.6 million dollars,” reads the tweet.
It is unclear which PACs Suarez is referring to in his tweet. One super PAC known to be supporting Suarez, SOS America, reported about $5.8 million in the bank to begin the year, according to available finance reports. The PAC’s next report is due July 31.
Suarez needs a minimum of 40,000 unique donors to qualify for the first GOP debate in August, according to the Republican National Committee, along with other fundraising and polling criteria. The mayor’s tweet suggests he will qualify for the debate, even though it is unclear from publicly available data exactly how many unique donors he has.
“Having just got started, we will meet the RNC limits for the first debate,” reads the tweet. “I am humbled and blessed. Thanks to all who have given.”
The campaign did not immediately answer the Herald’s questions about his campaign’s finances and the PACs referenced in his tweet.
Federal campaigns are required to itemize contributions of $200 or more. The Suarez campaign’s report showed about 350 individual donors each contributed over $200, totaling $916,663, but $10,400 of that was refunded. Another unknown number of contributors gave a total of $28,787 in small-dollar donations that are not required to be itemized in the report.
Read more: Billionaire treated Mayor Suarez to $30K Grand Prix weekend. Miami says he’s paying it back
The report shows that 12 people who identified as lawyers at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, the international litigation firm that hired Suarez in 2021, contributed to the campaign. The firm recently told the Herald that Suarez has been on unpaid leave since July 1.
Five people who listed their employer as real estate development company Gencom, including four executives, each donated $3,300, the maximum contribution for individual donors. Gencom is part of a team that plans to redevelop the Hyatt Regency and James L. Knight Center in downtown Miami.
Some of Suarez’s other donors who gave maximum contributions include:
▪ Nitin Motwani, developer of Miami WorldCenter
▪ Jonathan Oringer, founder of Shutterstock
▪ Russell Galbut, developer of Nema Miami in Edgewater
▪ Craig Robins, developer of the Design District
▪ David Grutman, club and restaurant owner
Suarez’s fundraising efforts made headlines Thursday when he tweeted that his campaign would hold a drawing to win tickets to see legendary footballer Lionel Messi’s upcoming debut for MLS franchise Inter Miami. The campaign advertised the raffle to attract donors, though a contribution is not required to enter the drawing.
Read more: Francis Suarez is fundraising with drawing for tickets to Messi’s Inter Miami debut
The effort could raise questions about how the raffle is permitted under Florida’s gaming laws. It could also indicate Suarez needs a bump in small-dollar donors to qualify for the first GOP debate on Aug. 23.
The mayor is facing scrutiny for his work outside City Hall, including a side job working for a real estate developer who sought help from the mayor’s office with a permitting problem. The matter is under state and federal investigation.
