State Rep. Kevin Steele ended his bid for Chief Financial Officer, announcing Thursday he instead plans to seek re-election to his Pasco County House district.
Steele, who founded Tampa-based health-care technology company DataLink Software and has been the wealthiest state lawmaker since he was first elected in 2022, said in a release Thursday the move was a family decision.
“Being present for them and staying close to home matters most, and I will continue serving the community I am proud to represent with the same dedication and conservative leadership they expect and deserve,” Steele stated.
In November Steele, R-Dade City, jumped into the race, taking on CFO Blaise Ingoglia in the Republican primary. Ingoglia, a former state senator, was appointed CFO last summer by Gov. Ron DeSantis and has helped take the lead on DeSantis’ push to lower property taxes.
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Steele was quickly backed for the office by U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, the former Florida governor. Now, Steele said he’s backing Ingoglia to keep the Cabinet position.
Ingoglia has raised $710,713 through his personal campaign account while his political committee Friends of Blaise Ingoglia had around $3.5 million on hand as of Dec. 31.
Steele had raised just $15,341 for the contest and loaned his campaign $5 million as of Dec. 31. He had spent less than $4,000.
The Cabinet job opened last spring when former CFO Jimmy Patronis successfully ran for a congressional seat.
State Sen. Joe Gruters, a Sarasota Republican who in August was elected chairman of the Republican National Committee, continues to keep open a campaign account for the statewide CFO office.
