Sun Sentinel
April 18, 2025
Anthony Man
In his first four weeks as a candidate in Florida’s most competitive congressional district, Republican George Moraitis raised almost as much as incumbent U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz took in during the first three months of the year.
Moraitis raised $152,369 over 29 days in March, according to his first campaign finance report. That works out to about $5,254 a day.
Moskowitz raised $168,960 during the first quarter, which works out to $1,877 a day.
“That’s strong for the first month and a first-time congressional candidate,” said Sean Foreman, a political scientist at Barry University.
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“I thought we did outstanding,” Moraitis said. “We had lots of support from a lot of good friends and family. We’re very excited to have the kind of support that we did.”
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Republicans are optimistic because Florida, including the 23rd Congressional District, has become more Republican. In both the 2022 and 2024 elections, Moskowitz won by the smallest margin of any congressional race in the state.
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“This is the only seat in Florida which is competitive in terms of a chance for Republicans to pick up a seat in the House. There may only be 30 to 40 seats in the House nationwide that may be competitive,” Moraitis said.
And national Republicans are taking Moraitis seriously as a candidate. Earlier this month, he met in Washington, D.C., with members of Congress, including Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Majority Whip Tom Emmer, and political staffers for Speaker Mike Johnson and the White House.
“We’ve had good meetings with leadership in the House, and they’re very enthusiastic about the campaign in terms of this is going to be a strategic race,” Moraitis said. “They’re very excited about how well we started.”