Rep. Erika Booth is starting 2026 with a sizable financial edge in one of the most closely watched House races in the state.

Campaign finance reports show the St. Cloud Republican closed 2025 with $111,752 raised in her campaign account and an additional $98,971 on hand in Booth PAC for an overall total of $192,119 on hand.

Booth’s lone challenger so far, Eric Gray, is starting the year with significantly fewer resources. Gray, a Democrat, entered the House race in October after previously running for Orange County Commission. He showed $15,860 raised in his first reporting period and spent $11,957, leaving him with less than $4,000 on hand at the end of the 2025.

Republican leaders have already signaled HD 35 remains a priority district this cycle. Booth is expected to receive full support from House Speaker-designate Sam Garrison and the Florida House Republican Campaign Committee, the primary campaign arm for state House Republicans.

Before her election to the House, Booth spent more than 20 years working as an elementary school teacher and previously served on the Osceola County School Board.

Gray has spent decades leading nonprofit organizations in Orange County and has cited opposition to HB 1365, a 2024 homelessness-related measure sponsored by Garrison, as a central motivation for his campaign.

HD 35 covers parts of Orange and Osceola counties. According to the most recent L2 voter data, the district is home to 42,837 Republicans and 41,806 Democrats as well as 48,995 third- and no-party voters.

The incumbent won the seat in 2024, defeating Democrat Tom Keen 52%-48% in a rematch after Keen prevailed in a 2023 Special Election. At the top of the ticket, Donald Trump carried the district with 52% in 2024, while Gov. Ron DeSantis won it with 56% two years earlier.

When people think about the economic engines of Sarasota and Bradenton, they often point to tourism, health care, construction, or the arts. Each sector is essential to the region’s identity and prosperity. But another driver of economic vitality exists — one that is stable, scalable, and compounding year after year — sitting on Sarasota Bay.

That driver is New College of Florida.

As Chief of Staff and Vice President of Finance and Administration, my role requires evaluating how public investment translates into real outcomes for students, families, employers, and communities. From that vantage point, New College’s economic trajectory in recent years is notable not only for its growth but for the clarity of its return.

According to a recent independent economic impact analysis, New College’s direct economic impact grew from $61.2 million in fiscal year 2023 to $104.5 million in 2025, a 71% increase in just two years. With responsible enrollment growth and continued strategic investment, direct impact is projected to reach $159.6 million by 2027–2028 and $270.9 million by 2033–2034 — more than 400% growth over a decade.

Those numbers are significant, but they tell only part of the story.

When indirect and induced effects are included — local spending by students, employees, visitors, and vendors — the regional impact becomes even more compelling. In 2024–2025, New College generated a total economic impact of $209.1 million. That figure is projected to rise to $319.2 million by 2027–2028 and to approximately $542 million annually by 2033–2034.

This growth reflects deliberate choices: strengthening academic programs, investing in campus infrastructure, and aligning the college’s mission with Florida’s workforce and civic priorities. Today, New College educates more students, attracts more talent, and draws more families, visitors, and investment into the Sarasota–Bradenton region than at any point in its history.

Universities also provide something increasingly rare in a volatile economy: permanence. They do not relocate when markets fluctuate. They create long-term jobs, attract research funding, and generate consistent demand for housing, services, and cultural amenities. Every student who chooses New College represents years of local economic participation, often followed by long-term residency and workforce contribution. More than 1,100 New College alumni live in Sarasota today, reinforcing the institution’s lasting imprint on the region.

Higher education remains one of the most reliable vehicles for public return on investment. Independent analysis shows New College delivers substantial returns on a relatively modest public investment. That is not theoretical. It is measurable, repeatable, and already underway.

Geography amplifies that impact. Situated between Sarasota and Bradenton, New College functions as a connective institution and a key driver of cross-county collaboration, supporting a truly regional economy. Students live, work, intern, and volunteer throughout both communities. Faculty and staff serve on nonprofit boards, contribute to civic leadership, and support local businesses across Sarasota and Manatee counties.

This is where investment matters most.

Institutions either capitalize on momentum or allow it to stall. Every additional dollar invested in New College does not simply preserve what exists; it multiplies regional return. Enrollment growth drives housing demand. Academic programs strengthen workforce pipelines. Campus development supports local contractors and suppliers. A thriving public liberal arts college enhances the region’s ability to attract employers who value talent, innovation, and quality of life.

Communities that transformed their economic futures — Austin, Pittsburgh, Raleigh — did not do so by accident. They made sustained, disciplined commitments to higher education as a cornerstone of growth. Sarasota and Bradenton face that same choice today.

From my seat overseeing budgets, strategy, and long-term planning, one conclusion is clear: New College of Florida is not a cost center. It is a growth engine. The returns are visible in the data, evident in neighborhoods, and reflected in the people who choose to live, work, and build their futures here.

When Florida invests in New College and regional leaders align on its continued growth, the result is not incremental benefit but compounding value. The impact is durable. The returns are shared. The opportunity is substantial.

That is not optimism.

That is strategy.

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Christie Fitz-Patrick is Chief of Staff and Vice President of Finance and Administration at New College of Florida.