Educational Guide

Educational Guide Port St. Lucie Voters Guide: How to Research Your Candidate’s Funding Sources

Introduction

You have more power than you might think. Before every election, candidates for office must publicly report who’s funding their campaigns. These reports are free, publicly available, and tell a story about where candidates’ priorities lie.

This guide walks you through the process of researching campaign funding like a pro no special knowledge required. In just 30 minutes, you can become better informed than most voters about your candidate.

Step 1: Understand Why This Matters

Before diving into data, understand the “why.” Campaign funding matters because:

Money = Access When someone donates to a campaign, they gain access to the candidate. They get phone calls returned, meetings scheduled, and ears that listen to their concerns. Small donors usually don’t get this access.

Funding Reflects Priorities A candidate who raises $10,000 from developers will naturally have more in common with developers than a candidate who raises $10,000 from teachers and nurses.

Follow the Money As the saying goes, “follow the money” to understand power. Campaign contributions show you where power and influence flow.

Voters Have a Right to Know Florida law requires disclosure specifically because voters have a right to know who’s financing candidates. This is transparency at work.

Step 2: Access the Campaign Finance Database

Website: voterfocus.com

What it is: A free, searchable database of all campaign finance disclosures filed with the Florida Division of Elections.

How to use it:

Go to voterfocus.com
In the “Campaign Finance” section, select:
- State: Florida
- County: St. Lucie County
- Office Sought: Mayor
- Election Year: 2025
- City: Port St. Lucie
You’ll see a list of all candidates for Port St. Lucie Mayor
Click on the candidate’s name
Select “Itemized Contributions” to see individual donors

What you’ll see:

Donor name
Donor address
Donor occupation/company
Date of contribution
Contribution amount
Type of contribution (check, cash, etc.)

Step 3: Organize the Data

Once you have the donor list, organize it to see patterns. Here’s how:

Create a spreadsheet with columns for:

Donor Name
Donation Amount
Occupation/Company Type
Location (city)
Industry Sector

Categorize each donor by industry:

Real Estate/Development
Construction/Contracting
Professional Services (Law, Architecture, Engineering)
Public Employees
Business Owners
Retired/Other
Individual Residents

Calculate totals:

Total raised from each sector
Total from in-area donors vs. out-of-area donors
Average donation amount
Median donation amount
Number of donors from each sector

Example:

Donor	Amount	Sector	Location
Berry USA Development	$1,000	Real Estate	Palm Beach Gardens
Michael Bernard	$250	Business Consultant	Port St. Lucie
John Smith	$100	Retired	Port St. Lucie

Step 4: Create Visual Analysis

Numbers are easier to understand as charts. Use free tools like:

Google Sheets (sheets.google.com) – creates charts automatically
Canva (canva.com) – for infographics
Piktochart – for data visualization

Chart types that reveal patterns:

Pie Chart: Show the percentage of funds from each industry sector

Real Estate/Development: 50%
Individual Residents: 20%
Professional Services: 15%
Other: 15%

Bar Chart: Compare donation amounts by source

Real estate companies: average $1,000
Individual PSL residents: average $125
Public employees: average $200

Geographic Map: Show where out-of-area donations come from

Palm Beach area: 25%
Miami area: 10%
Fort Lauderdale area: 8%
Inside Port St. Lucie: 57%

Timeline: Show when donations were received

Large donations clustered before election? Suspicious timing.
Small donations spread throughout year? Shows grassroots support.

Step 5: Compare Across Candidates

Campaign finance means more when you compare. Do this:

Get funding data for ALL mayoral candidates (not just one)
Create a comparison spreadsheet
Compare:
- Total funds raised
- Average donation size
- Major sectors represented
- Geographic source of funds
- Percentage from individual residents

Comparison Chart Example:

Metric	Candidate A	Candidate B	Candidate C
Total Raised	$40,000	$25,000	$35,000
Avg Donation	$350	$120	$280
Real Estate $	$20,000 (50%)	$5,000 (20%)	$15,000 (43%)
Individual PSL %	20%	60%	40%
Out-of-area %	45%	15%	35%

This reveals which candidates rely most on outside corporate money vs. local grassroots support.

Step 6: Investigate Connections

Now dig deeper. For each major donor, ask:

1. Does this company do business with Port St. Lucie?

Search: “[Company name] Port St. Lucie contract”
Check: City procurement records
Look: City council meeting minutes for company mentions

2. Has this company received zoning approvals or variances?

Check: Planning & Zoning Board meeting minutes (psl.legistar.com)
Search: “[Company name] zoning variance” in city records
Review: Building permit records

3. Is this company active in local politics?

Search: “[Company name] campaign contributions” + “Port St. Lucie”
Does it donate to multiple candidates? (Shows non-partisan interest)
Does it donate to only one candidate? (Shows strategic/targeted interest)

Step 7: Check for Conflicts of Interest

Look for red flags:

Red Flag #1: Company Donations + Recent Contracts

Company donated $1,000 → Company received city contract within 6 months
Timeline suggests quid pro quo

Red Flag #2: Company Donations + Zoning Changes

Company donated → Company got zoning variance approved
Could indicate influence

Red Flag #3: Multiple Employees Donating

CEO donates $1,000
Vice President donates $1,000
President donates $1,000
Suggests company coordinating donations to maximize influence

Red Flag #4: Out-of-State Donors

Individual from Pennsylvania donates $1,000
Why does someone 1,000+ miles away care about Port St. Lucie politics?
Could indicate hidden ownership or influence

Red Flag #5: Donations Right Before Key Votes

Major donor contributes $5,000
One week later, city votes on issue benefiting that donor
Suggests timing is not coincidental

Step 8: Ask Questions at Public Meetings

Attend Port St. Lucie City Council meetings and ask candidates directly:

Questions to ask:

“Of your top 10 donors, how many are real estate or development companies?”
“Have any of your major donors received city contracts or approvals while you were in office?”
“Do you have a policy on recusing yourself from votes affecting major campaign donors?”
“Why did you receive significant funding from companies outside Port St. Lucie?”
“Do you think the current campaign finance landscape creates conflicts of interest in Port St. Lucie?”
“Would you support campaign finance reform, such as contribution limits or disclosure requirements?”

Where to ask: Port St. Lucie City Council meetings (held monthly at City Hall). Public comment periods allow residents to ask questions.

Step 9: Investigate Expenditures Too

Campaign finance reports also show how money was spent. Check:

Consulting Fees: Who did the candidate pay for consulting? What services?
Event Spending: Did the candidate hold expensive fundraising events? Who catered them?
Advertising: How much was spent on ads? Where did they run?
Staff: Who was hired to run the campaign?

Example investigation:

If a candidate spent $5,000 on consulting services to “Good Help Group” (located at a donor’s address), that’s suspicious
It suggests the campaign paid a company owned by a donor potentially funneling money back to the donor

Check the “Itemized Expenditures” tab on voterfocus.com to see this breakdown.

Once you’ve researched, share your findings:

Ways to share:

Create a social media post with graphics
Write a letter to the editor of the local newspaper
Share at community meetings
Talk to friends and neighbors
Attend candidate forums and ask about funding

What to highlight:

“Candidate A received 50% of funding from development companies”
“Candidate B raised 80% of funds from local residents”
“[Company X] donated to multiple candidates simultaneously suggesting strategic interest in city policy”

Be fair:

Don’t exaggerate
Stick to the data
Acknowledge if all candidates have similar funding patterns
Don’t assume corruption just raise questions

Tools and Resources

Free Tools:

Google Sheets: sheets.google.com (create spreadsheets and charts)
Canva: canva.com (create infographics)
Piktochart: piktochart.com (data visualization)

Public Records:

Campaign Finance: voterfocus.com
City Council Minutes: psl.legistar.com
City Procurement: cityofpsl.com/Procurement
Building Permits: cityofpsl.com/Building
Planning & Zoning: cityofpsl.com/Planning

Good Government Organizations:

League of Women Voters: lwvfl.org
Common Cause: commoncause.org
Transparency International: transparency.org
Good Government Initiative: goodgovernment.org

News Sources (Local):

Treasure Coast Palm: tcpalm.com
Port St. Lucie Talks: portstlucietalks.com
Hometown News: hometownnewstc.com

Sample Investigation: Port St. Lucie 2025

Here’s what a simple 30-minute investigation might reveal:

Step 1: Get the data (5 minutes)

Go to voterfocus.com
Download candidate’s contribution list
Export to spreadsheet

Step 2: Categorize donors (10 minutes)

Identify major donors (over $500)
Categorize by industry
Calculate totals

Findings:

19 companies donated $1,000 each
17 of these are real estate, construction, or development companies
Total from development sector: ~$20,000 (50% of total)
Out-of-area donors: 45% of major funds

Step 3: Check for conflicts (10 minutes)

Search city council meeting minutes for company names
Check planning & zoning board records
Search for recent contracts

Findings:

Berry USA Development (major donor) has pending zoning request
TransFlorida Development Corp (major donor) bid on city contract
Verdex Construction (major donor) completed city project in 2024

Step 4: Ask the question (5 minutes)

“Did campaign donations influence decisions on these companies’ projects?”

Conclusion: The data raises legitimate questions worth asking publicly.

Your Power as a Voter

The most important thing to understand: You have power. Elected officials care about reelection. If you and other voters show you care about campaign financing and influence, candidates will respond.

Actions you can take:

Research before voting – Don’t vote blind; understand candidates’ funding
Vote strategically – Support candidates with healthier funding patterns
Demand accountability – Ask tough questions at public meetings
Advocate for reform – Support campaign finance limits and transparency
Share your research – Help other voters understand the issues

References

Voterfocus.com. (2025). Campaign Finance Disclosures. Retrieved from https://www.voterfocus.com/CampaignFinance/

City of Port St. Lucie. (2025). City Council Meeting Minutes. Retrieved from https://psl.legistar.com/

City of Port St. Lucie. (2025). Planning & Zoning Board Records. Retrieved from https://www.cityofpsl.com/

Florida Division of Elections. (2025). Campaign Finance Disclosure Requirements. Retrieved from https://www.dos.myflorida.com/elections/

League of Women Voters Florida. (2025). Voter Resources. Retrieved from https://lwvfl.org/