House Seat 81: Having raised more than $155,000 with just under $125,000 in the bank, Rep. Adam Fetterman, D-Port St. Lucie, is being challenged by Republican former Rep. Gayle Harrell for this seat representing parts of Martin and St. Lucie counties. Harrell is no slouch when it comes to fund-raising, bringing in more than $110,000 in cash andmore than $50,000 through in-kind donations, but she has already spent almost $45,000. Fetterman is the favorite but this should be an interesting and competitive battle.
House Seat 82: Rep. William Snyder, R-Stuart, is getting some press due to his sponsorship of a new bill hoping to bring Arizonas immigration measures to the Sunshine State. Representing parts of Martin, Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties, Snyder can focus on his bill since he is the only candidate in the race and is headed back to Tallahassee.
House Seat 83: With Rep. Carl Domino, R-Jupiter, running for the Senate, this seat representing parts of Palm Beach County is open. Three Republicans and one Democrat are battling for it. All eyes are on Republican candidate Pat Rooney, brother of a congressman and part of the family that owns the Pittsburgh Steelers. Having raised almost $130,000, Rooney should be able to defeat challenges in the primary from Nancy Cardone and Francisco Rodriguez, though Cardone had $16,000 in the bank at the end of July. Democratic candidate Dr. Mark Marciano, an optometrist, is no pushover. Marciano raised more than $102,000 and had more than $63,000 on hand at the end of July -- even more than Rooney did. This battle will be one to watch come November.
House Seat 84: Rep. Mack Bernard, D-West Palm Beach, who represents parts of Palm Beach County, appears a solid favorite to win come November. While Bernard only raised more than $44,000 and had more than $21,000 on hand at the end of July, his Republican opponent Albert Key brought in less than $3,800 and had less than $600 on hand. Unless Key shows he can raise cash, it appears that Bernard is headed back to Tallahassee.
House Seat 85: Representing parts of Palm Beach County, Rep. Joe Abruzzo, D-Wellington, looks well-poised to defeat whoever emerges from the Republican primary. Abruzzo has strung together four impressive fund-raising quarters, pulling in just less than $95,000 and keeping more than $73,000 on hand at the end of July. The two candidates in the Republican primary -- D.J. DeRenzo and Tami Donnally -- both raised less than $10,000 and had less than $2,000 on hand at the end of July. Whoever wins the Republican nomination will have a difficult challenge in knocking off Abruzzo.
