Florida campaign finance

Sprawl, powered by ‘dirty money’

January 22, 2026

State campaign finance data for the fourth quarter of 2025 has dropped, and initially we were going to write about how much Big Sugar gave last year. And in fact, we WILL write about it, right here: According to the…

Dirty Money: Big Sugar campaign cash nears $2.5 million in 2025

October 16, 2025

Statewide elections are still a year away — but Florida’s sugar industry continues to spend like there’s no tomorrow. The latest state campaign finance data shows that Big Sugar has given at least $2.48 million in “dirty money” — political…

Digging into Ashley Moody’s ‘Dirty Money’

April 2, 2025

Florida’s newest U.S. Senator, Ashley Moody, was appointed in January and has never run for that seat — so she hasn’t (yet) amassed a treasure chest of federal “dirty money” contributions. But as Florida’s Attorney General from 2017-January 2025, she…

DeSantis-legislative feud: They’re ALL too cozy with Big Ag!

February 6, 2025

We’re watching the Ron DeSantis-Legislative feud with a truckload of popcorn. The proximate cause of the recent nastiness is immigration legislation, the fact DeSantis called the Legislature up to Tallahassee on what was supposed to be a week off, the…

Digging for ‘dirty money’: How to find out much your county commission candidates got

August 8, 2024

At VoteWater we focus on “dirty money” because politicians who take money from polluting special interests are more likely to vote for those special interests, and against clean water. There’s a direct correlation. Our “Dirty Money Project” — tracking campaign…

You get what you pay for – and that’s why developers give so much

August 1, 2024

County commissioners throughout Florida are constantly being asked by developers to change zonings or amend comprehensive plans, to leapfrog the urban services boundaries and more. As you’ve noticed as you sit in endless traffic, elected officials almost always say “yes”…

Who’s getting Big Sugar money this election cycle? Here’s the list

July 25, 2024

**UPDATED** We goofed! There’s even more Big Sugar campaign cash out there than we thought! Due to a glitch in the search process, we underreported — by more than $1 million! — the amount of money given by Florida Crystals…

How ‘Dirty Money’ keeps the powerful in power

November 10, 2023

Here at VoteWater we’re hip-deep in research for our “Dirty Money Project,” and we’ve noticed something interesting: Both sides — that is, Republicans and Democrats — take money from polluting special interests. But the amount they get coincides with the…

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