Florida Gov. DeSantis receives $109.8 million, with Republican Governors Association as top donor


In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis is the number one fundraiser in state politics in the 2022 election cycle so far. According to the most recent campaign finance reports made to the Florida Secretary of State, the governor received $109,869,159 in total contributions and spent $13,706,657 between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021. DeSantis is running for re-election in 2022.

Gov. DeSantis is a member of the Republican Party and first assumed office in 2019.

Gov. DeSantis’s reported campaign finance activity, by quarter (2018-2021)

Contributions to Gov. DeSantis

Of the $109.8 million already reported in the 2022 election cycle, 14.3 percent came from the top 10 donors.

Top Donors to Gov. DeSantis (1/1/2021 – 12/31/2021)

RankTotal AmountDonor Name Donor Type
1.$6,600,000Republican Governors Association Entity
2.$5,000,000Kenneth C. GriffinIndividual
3.$800,000David F MacNeilIndividual
4.$518,899Republican Party of FloridaEntity
5.$505,000Florida Prosperity FundEntity
6.$505,000Gale L. LemerandIndividual
7.$500,000Spring Bay CapitalEntity
8.$500,000Walter W. Buckley Jr.Individual
9.$400,000Voice of Florida BusinessEntity
10.$350,000Bruce RaunerIndividual

Expenditures by Gov. DeSantis

On the expenditures side, Gov. DeSantis reported over $3.3 million, with 76.7 percent of all spending going to the 10 payees topping the list. 

Top Expenditures by Gov. DeSantis (1/1/2021 – 12/31/2021)

RankTotal AmountPayee Name Payee Type
1.$695,421Ace Specialties LLCEntity
2.$524,451Anedot IncEntity
3.$280,640Eleventh Street Strategies LLCEntity
4.$225,117Ello Creative LLCEntity
5.$206,006Salesforce.com IncEntity
6.$199,438Hmb Strategies LLCEntity
7.$137,256Robert Watkins & CompanyEntity
8.$108,000ZDB IncEntity
9.$88,223Winred Technical Services LLCEntity
10.$77,081MBI Direct MailEntity

How Gov. DeSantis’s fundraising compares to other governors

Among elected officials holding the same level of state office, fundraising varies widely. A number of factors, including whether an incumbent officeholder is running for reelection, influence donor activity. Here is how fundraising by Gov. DeSantis compares to the 10 other governors with campaign finance data available from Transparency USA in 2022:

Fundraising reported by 11 U.S. governors in the 2022 election cycle

The data above are based on campaign finance reports that active Florida PACs submitted to the Florida Secretary of State. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines. State or federal law may require filers to submit additional reports.

Report NameReport Due Date
20211/15/2022
2022 Q14/15/2022
2022 Q27/15/2022
2022 Pre-Primary7/23/2022
2022 Post-Primary and Q310/15/2022
2022 Pre-General10/29/2022
2022 Post-General and Q41/17/2023

This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Learn more about our work here.