627
Tampa City Council candidate Blake Casper opened his campaign with more than $124,000, campaign finance reports covering Jan. 1 through Feb. 3 show. That includes $105,000 of Casper’s own money.
Casper, a wealthy McDonalds franchiser and co-founder of Tampa’s Oxford Exchange, entered the race on the last day of qualifying for the race, Jan. 20.
Casper took in less than $20,000 from donors, including 15 top-dollar contributions of $1,000. Only 36 individuals contributed over the two weeks Casper was able to raise funds during the reporting period.
Casper’s opponent, incumbent Bill Carlson, raised $77,500 during the reporting period, from 213 donations.
– Peter Schorsch, Extensive Enterprises