Miami-Dade Chief of Public Safety James Reyes led a field of 17 candidates in fundraising for the county Sheriff’s race in the first quarter of 2024 with almost $378,000 collected between Jan. 1 and March 31.
Reyes, a Democrat, raised $92,500 last quarter through his campaign account and $285,000 through his political committee, Miami-Dade Safe & Secure.
The PC has been fundraising since May 2023. Combined with Reyes’ campaign collections since he jumped into the race on Jan. 22, he has amassed $480,000 to become Miami-Dade’s first elected Sheriff since the 1960s.
More than 215 people contributed to Reyes’ campaign last quarter. His biggest individual benefactors live outside the county.
Lewis Stahl, a health care technology and real estate executive in Boca Raton, donated $25,000. Early childhood education executive Maurice Vaughn, also from Boca, chipped in $24,000.
New Jersey developer Michael Fux, Fort Myers homemaker Lisa Gottstein and Sebring communications executive Matthew Hall each donated $10,000. So did Miami real estate broker Monica Veiga and retiree Giovanni Veiga.
Miami-Dade Community Services Chief Morris Copeland and Miami-Dade Chief of Preparedness and Forensics JD Patterson, Reyes’ immediate predecessor in the Public Safety Chief role, each gave $500.
Former Miami-Dade Transportation and Public Works Director Alice Bravo, who now runs her own infrastructure consulting firm, donated $250.
Reyes’ two biggest checks were for $50,000 apiece. One came from the political committee of Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony, Reyes’ former boss. The other came from the political committee of Reyes’ current boss, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who gave an additional $1,000 to Reyes’ campaign account.
The political committee of Stephen Ross, Chair of The Related Companies and owner of the Miami Dolphins and Hard Rock Stadium, gave $7,500.
Reyes spent $76,000 in Q1 on various consulting services, voter data access, staffing, outreach, advertising, food, media production, web services, and bank and donation-processing fees. He had about $327,000 left to spend going into the second quarter.
