It’s just one week before voters decide whether to give Scott Black yet another term on the Dade City Commission, or turn his seat over to newcomer Angelica Herrera.
But if dollars were votes, Black may have this one in the bag.
In what was a very busy fundraising week for both candidates, Black out-raised Herrera $3,900 to $2,300. That now gives Black $7,825 through March 21, with Herrera amassing just a little over $2,600. And Herrera has needed nearly every penny so far, with just $28.40 left over in the bank up to the latest report, while Black still has $5,900 to spare.
The two have combined to raise more than $10,000, closing in on the $12,000 total raised in the 2012 municipal elections which featured two races.
As of 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, nearly 1,400 early votes had been cast in municipal elections across the county, according to the Pasco County supervisor of elections office, and more than 200 in this race alone.
Each vote will be quite costly for the candidates, however. In 2012, just 559 voters turned out for the municipal elections that saw victories for William Dennis and Jim Shive, each with a little more than 300 votes. A similar win for either of the current candidates would mean at this point Black has spent $6.24 per vote, and Herrera $8.64.
Over the last two weeks, Black has kept his contributions from Dade City residents with the exception of a $250 in-kind donation from Imagine Solutions Group of San Antonio, who did work on the commissioner’s website. His donors included former city clerk and finance officer Jim Class, who gave $200. Class resigned late last year after the commission decided to suddenly split his position during a workshop meeting.
JDR Properties of Pasco provided the biggest contribution in the period with $1,000, while Hampton Inn Dade City owner Small Street Hotels DC and attorney A.P. Gibbs chipped in $500 each.
Herrera’s contributions have all come from Dade City over the last two weeks, including a $1,000 check from physician David Hernandez and $600 from Peter Hernandez, who described himself in campaign documents as a student and part-time worker. Both David and Peter Hernandez share the same address.
Herrera also received $500 from Frias Family Enterprises Inc., which owns a store on Seventh Street.
The election for Dade City Commission is April 8.
