Aaron Bean, Michael Kirwan set fundraising pace in CD 4

As U.S. Rep. Aaron Bean pursues a third term, the Fernandina Beach Republican may end up facing a Democrat in November who can actually raise money.

Bean still holds a 3-to-1 edge in money raised over Michael Kirwan of Jacksonville as of March 31, the last date for which the Federal Election Commission has records.

Yet Kirwan’s performance thus far suggests that if he can win the Primary, resources may be more evenly distributed than they were in Bean’s 2022 and 2024’s races against grassroots candidate LaShonda Holloway.

Bean, who represents Florida’s 4th Congressional District, raised more than $240,000 in the first quarter. That includes $163,000 donated by PACs. The rest came from individuals.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, United States Chamber of Commerce, Duke Energy PAC, International Association of Firefighters, NextEra Energy PAC, and GEO Group PAC donated, as did committees associated with multiple health insurers.

All told, Bean has raised more than $1.5 million, and has almost $1.25 million cash on hand. He is the only Republican in the field with an open campaign account at this writing.

Kirwan, a Harvard law graduate who once chaired the Jacksonville Ethics Commission, has raised more than $500,000 throughout the campaign.

Nearly $150,000 of that was brought in during the first quarter of the year, suggesting that he has momentum beyond his initial launch. Kirwan had more than $225,000 cash on hand as of March 31.

All but $5,000 of Kirwan’s haul in Q1 was derived from individual contributors.

Two other Democrats are also running, but they aren’t raising much money.

Brit Robinson has raised a little more than $7,000 this cycle and has roughly $2,200 on hand. Ricky Knoles retains about $50 of the $5,020 he has raised to date.

CD 4 assumed its current configuration in 2022’s congressional reapportionment, which eliminated a Jacksonville-to-Tallahassee minority access district. In its current form, it includes all of Nassau and Clay counties and the part of Jacksonville north and west of the St. Johns River.

The current map is 41% Republican and 34% Democrat. Bean received 57% of the vote in 2024’s General Election, outperforming the party split and running up numbers outside of Duval County.

But meaningful structural differences could emerge even if this district remains as-is after a potential congressional reapportionment in the coming weeks. By most accounts, Democrats and independents have soured on Republican-controlled Washington since the 2024 election, and perhaps that could help Kirwan in November.