With early voting underway ahead of the Nov. 3 general election, the latest campaign finance reports show substantial fundraising disparities among Manatee County Commission candidates, along with continued contributions from prominent local business interests and political committees (PACs) connected to a network of Tallahassee political operatives.
Republican incumbent Amanda Ballard, seeking reelection in District 2, has emerged as the best-funded candidate across all county commission races, reporting $83,515 in monetary contributions, $1,556.40 in in-kind contributions and $60,181 in expenditures as of the most recent reporting period ending Oct. 2.
Ballard's Democratic challenger, Charles Smith, has reported $13,008 in monetary contributions, approximately $5,500 of which came from loans he made to his own campaign.
Ballard has reported receiving $21,900 in contributions since the August primary, while Smith has reportedly received approximately $3,000, nearly all from individual donors. Smith's reports show no PAC contributions during the period, although he received a one-time $750 contribution from the Democratic Party of Manatee.
Ballard's post-primary fundraising includes business leaders and political figures.
Among Ballard's post-primary contributions were maximum $1,000 donations from several individuals with ties to local business, real estate development and state politics.
Those contributors include Richard Corcoran, former speaker of the House and current president of New College of Florida, which employs Ballard's husband; Ryan Lieberman, vice president of Sarasota-based property development company the Barrington Group and president of the Suncoast Builders Association; Mark Vengroff of One Stop Housing, a residential development company; Republican state Rep. William "Bill" Conerly, who is seeking reelection to House District 72; former Florida Senate President Bill Galvano; Janet Mixon, of the former Mixon Fruit Farms, which Manatee County purchased last September; and Matt Buchanan, son of U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan.
Lieberman's contribution is somewhat notable given professional connections involving Ballard's husband and Suncoast Builders Association CEO Jon Mast. Ballard's husband previously worked under Mast when the organization operated under its former name, the Building Industry Association, or ‘BIA.’
TBT previously examined records related to the organization in its report, Public record emails provide insights to the BIA white paper.
Other maximum contributions to Ballard came from Bob Spencer, president of Palmetto-based West Coast Tomato, and Jones Potato Farm, a large landholder in Manatee County. Both have contributed regularly in local election cycles.
Previous reporting by TBT in the 2024 election cycle noted that former incumbent commissioner candidate Kevin Van Ostenbridge's campaign documented multiple maximum contributions associated with Jones Potato Farm and West Coast Tomato.
Ballard's current filings also show a $1,000 contribution from McClure Rev Trust. D.C. McClure is an owner and partner in West Coast Tomato, and the McClure family's business interests appear in the filings of other candidates as well.
Ballard additionally received $1,000 from the Keep Florida Moving Forward PAC, $1,000 from the Friends of Mike Rahn PAC and $1,000 from the Government Reform and Integrity Task Force PAC, chaired by her husband, David Ballard.
Ballard's PAC and a broader network of political committees
The Government Reform and Integrity Task Force PAC, commonly known as GRIT, was first reported by our publication earlier this cycle, in reporting covering late campaign spending and PAC activity ahead of the August primary.
Before the primary, GRIT—a PAC established by Amanda Ballard’s husband, David, in July 2026—reported receiving $31,500 in contributions. All of those contributions came from other PACs associated with prominent Tallahassee lobbyist David Ramba.
Since then, GRIT has reported receiving another $25,000 on Sept. 14, all from The Committee for Justice, Transportation and Business PAC, which is also controlled by Ramba.
(Our earlier reporting is available at Latest campaign finance reports show late spending, PAC activity ahead of Manatee primary).
The Committee for Justice, Transportation and Business PAC's own campaign finance reports show substantial contributions in 2026 from other committees associated with Ramba, including $275,000 from his Strong Communities of Southwest Florida PC. That contribution accounted for the bulk of the Committee for Justice, Transportation and Business PAC's reported receipts for the year.
Strong Communities has reported substantial financial activity in 2026, as well as in prior election cycles.
Its reported contributors include individuals and businesses with local and regional ties, among them Pat Neal, NDC Construction, Vengroff Investments, One Stop Housing, Blue Sky Communities, Waste Pro, the Barrington Group, Benderson Development, ZNS Engineering, Rye Associates, Bob Spencer, John Falkner and North Lake Communities Inc.
Ramba’s Strong Communities of Southwest Florida PAC has also reported receiving a combined $2.77 million from an entity named Healthy Progress LLC, with the records listing the entity's address as 3433 Lithia Pinecrest Road, Suite 233, Valrico.
The reported transactions include a Sept. 28, 2026, contribution of $2.52 million from Healthy Progress LLC, and then an additional Oct. 13, 2026, contribution of $250,000 from the same entity.
Strong Communities subsequently reported multiple contributions to the Republican Party of Florida. The expenditure records provided show:
The four reported expenditures total $1.8 million.
The PAC's latest reported activity follows previous reporting by TBT related to PAC-funded text messages in Bradenton City Council races. That reporting examined the financial relationships between Ramba-associated political committees, including a PAC that took credit for the messages.
Evan Powers, the chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, is also a listed lobbyist with Ramba's firm, Ramba Consulting Group, according to the firm's published team information.
Rahn reports $75,000 in campaign contributions and maintains a separately funded PAC
In the District 4 commission race, Republican incumbent Mike Rahn heads into the general election without an opponent after defeating another Republican in the primary.
Rahn will face no opposition in November after defeating his Republican challenger in the primary. Even so, his campaign amassed $75,000 in total reported contributions, making him the second-best-funded county commission candidate.
Rahn also maintains a separate PAC, the Friends of Mike Rahn PAC. Although Rahn chairs the committee, Ramba serves as its treasurer and registered agent, according to the Florida Division of Elections.
The Friends of Mike Rahn PAC has reported $156,000 in contributions. All but $1,000 originated from other PACs associated with Ramba, including $35,000 from The Committee for Justice, Transportation and Business PAC.
The remaining $1,000 came from a PAC for which Ramba serves as registered agent and treasurer, while Jon Mast is listed as the committee's chair.
In its most recent reporting cycles, the Friends of Mike Rahn PAC reported expenditures of $1,000 to Ballard's campaign, $2,000 to the Republican Party of Florida and $1,000 to the campaign of Republican gubernatorial nominee Byron Donalds.
Poulton holds a substantial fundraising lead in District 6
The District 6 at-large race, which represents voters countywide, features Republican Tara Poulton and Democrat Reggie Bellamy, a former county commissioner.
Poulton has reported $71,001 in total monetary contributions and another $2,406 in in-kind contributions. Her campaign has reported more than $55,000 in expenditures.
Bellamy has reported approximately $20,470 total in contributions, less than half Poulton's total.
Poulton received $15,400 of her contributions since the August primary. Her fundraising continues to reflect a mix of individual donors, businesses and some PACs, consistent with previous reporting by TBT.
Among her post-primary contributions were maximum $1,000 donations from former Florida Senate President Galvano, another $1,000 from his law firm, and $1,000 from New College of Florida President Corcoran. Bob Spencer of West Coast Tomato also contributed $1,000.
Poulton received additional maximum contributions from multiple entities associated with the McClure family:
Other maximum contributions included $1,000 from Jones Potato Farm, $1,000 from the Gulf Coast Builders Exchange PAC and $1,000 from the Keep Florida Moving Forward PAC.
Her campaign also reported $500 contributions from Lakewood Ranch Medical Center and Manatee Memorial Hospital.
The overlap among some contributors to Ballard and Poulton is evident in their filings. Both campaigns reported contributions from Corcoran, Spencer, Jones Potato Farm, and entities associated with the McClure family, as well as the Keep Florida Moving Forward PAC. Galvano also contributed to both campaigns, although Poulton's filings additionally show a contribution from his law firm.
Bellamy's contributions largely come from individuals
Bellamy has reported receiving approximately $10,000 in contributions since the primary election.
Most of the post-primary contributions came from individual donors, with relatively few exceeding $500. His filings identify contributors by occupation, including teachers, doctors, attorneys, and retirees.
Among the larger contributions were $1,000 from the Gregory Patterson Law Firm and $1,500 from the Democratic Executive Committee.
Under Florida Statutes § 106.08, the standard contribution limit for a local commission candidate is generally $1,000 per contributor per election. However, the statute exempts contributions from state and county political party executive committees and affiliated party committees from that standard limit.
Bellamy's campaign has reported $7,294 in expenditures as of the latest reporting deadline, compared with more than $55,000 for Poulton.
District 1 candidates report modest post-primary fundraising
The District 1 race will determine who fills the seat left vacant by the death of Commissioner Carol Ann Felts. Republican candidate Elizabeth Arnold has reported $25,000 in monetary contributions and $2,658 in in-kind donations. Roughly $2,000 of Arnold’s monetary fundraising came after the August primary, all from individual donors, including one who contributed the maximum $1,000.
Democratic challenger Sari Lindroos-Valimaki has reported $14,541 in monetary contributions and $172 in in-kind donations. About $2,800 of her monetary contributions came after the primary. Nearly all of Lindroos-Valimaki’s support has come from individual donors, with one exception: a $1,700 contribution from the Florida Democratic Party.
Both candidates’ reports show fundraising driven largely by individual contributions, with limited post-primary activity compared with some other county commission campaigns.
What voters can learn from the records
The latest filings show substantial differences in fundraising among Manatee County commission candidates. Ballard leads the field with $83,515 in monetary contributions, followed by Rahn with $75,000 and Poulton with $71,001. Their challengers have reported considerably less: approximately $13,008 for Smith and $20,470 for Bellamy.
The reports also show how campaign money moves between candidates, businesses, and political action committees (PACs), with some PACs funding others. Public records allow voters to trace those transactions and identify recurring contributors and shared funding sources.
Voters can review candidate contributions and expenditures through the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections' local candidates and committees page. Records for PACs registered with the Florida Division of Elections are available through the state's political committee database.
Early voting in Manatee County runs from Monday, Oct. 19, through Sunday, Nov. 1, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information, visit the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections website.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story was published inadvertently without the section covering the District 1 race. The story has been updated to include fundraising information for both candidates.
Dawn Kitterman is a staff reporter and investigative journalist for The Bradenton Times, covering local government news. She can be reached at dawn.kitterman@thebradentontimes.com.
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