The race to become the next mayor of Miami-Dade County is turning into a costly affair. The three alleged front-runners, Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina, former county Commissioner Carlos Gimenez, and ex-state Rep. Marcelo Llorente have raised a combined $1.2 million according to their first quarterly campaign finance report. And there is still a month to go before the election. Of course, that amount of cash usually requires some exceptional bundling of contributions.
Robaina leads the pack in that category. A tip of the hat to former Miami Herald reporter Elaine de Valle, who went through the Hialeah mayor's report to find his top donors, which cut down on our own research time. After the jump, we've listed the top ten contributors to the Robaina, Gimenez, and Llorente campaigns:
- Roberto Cayon, $38,000 for Robaina. The former founding president of Hialeah's Ready State Bank has partnered with the mayor on several real estate deals.
- Martin Caparros, $18,000 for Robaina. A Miami Lakes real estate developer has also done business with the Hialeah politician.
- Bilzen Sumberg, $12,050 for Gimenez. The downtown Miami law firm represents many clients that do business with Miami-Dade County.
- Yoram Izhak, $12,000 to Robaina. A businessman who owns and operates amusement game sites in Miami and Hialeah that Miami Police Chief Miguel Exposito alleges are used for illegal gambling.
- Jeffrey Berkowitz, $5,500 for Gimenez. The real estate developer who built big box retail shopping centers at Dadeland North in east Kendall and Fifth Street and Alton Road in Miami Beach.
- Tibor Hollo, $5,000 for Gimenez. Condo developer who helped build the Miami skyline with his projects.
- Big Sugar, $4,500 for Llorente. The Fanjul brothers and their affiliated companies back the former state legislator.
- Alan Potamkin, $4,000 for Gimenez. The auto dealership magnate is seeking to redevelop a portion of NW 7th Avenue in Liberty City where he owns several car sale lots.
- Oliva Cigar Co. $4,000 for Llorente. A family-owned cigar making business in Miami Lakes.
- Ronald Book, $3,000 for Llorente. The powerhouse lobbyist who represents numerous private clients, as well as Miami-Dade County in Tallahassee.
