Secret money shakes up Broward State Attorney race at last minute. And even a billionaire has pitched in.
Secret and not-so-secret donors are pouring thousands in campaign cash to the candidates who want to be Broward’s next top prosecutor, shaking up the Democratic primary in its crucial final days.
Eight candidates are looking for the Democratic nomination, and four of them are being helped by political action committees — fundraising groups that can accept larger donations than individual campaigns and can make it more challenging to find out where the money is coming from.
The PACs are not allowed to coordinate directly with campaigns, but they can boost candidates by praising their public stands and attacking their opponents. In a race with eight candidates, where it’s unlikely any will emerge with more than 50 percent of the vote on Tuesday, the boost may still be enough to influence the outcome, even after taking early voting and mail-in ballots into account.
The PAC supporting Sarahnell Murphy, the candidate backed by outgoing State Attorney Mike Satz, sent out a mailer criticizing two of her opponents: Joe Kimok, for calling for the decriminalization of marijuana, heroin and crack and prostitution; and Joshua Rydell, for representing “wife beaters, stalkers, armed robbers and more.”
