Erin Huntley raises more than a quarter million dollars in bid to flip HD 45

Orange County GOP Chair Erin Huntley closed 2025 having raised more than $252,000 for her bid to unseat Democratic Rep. Leonard Spencer.

Huntley is attempting to flip a House District 45 seat held by Republicans as recently as 2024.

The candidate, who has gotten 466 contributions already, attributes her fundraising success to the strength of the coalition backing her.

“Grassroots conservatives, community leaders, and job creators across Central Florida are rallying behind our campaign because they know we’ll fight for lower taxes, safer communities, and a stronger future for Florida families,” Huntley said. “I’m grateful for the confidence they’ve placed in me, and I’m more motivated than ever to earn their trust and deliver results in Tallahassee.”

Huntley reported more than $30,000 in donations to her official campaign account in the final quarter of 2025. Another $7,000 went to her Conservative Solutions for Florida political committee during the same period.

Notable fourth-quarter contributors include former Sen. Carey Baker, Roger and Bobbie Hirschy, Paul Mitchell, Nardella & Nardella PLLC, Rubin Turnbull & Associates, Associated Industries of Florida PAC, the Florida Podiatry Political Committee, Florida Chiropractic Society, Florida Credit Union Political Action Committee, Trademark Metals Recycling LLC, and Oxford Advisory Group.

Winter Garden lawyer Lee Steinhauer, who is currently Huntley’s only opponent in the Republican Primary, closed 2025 having raised and self-funded roughly $63,000 via his campaign account, with $3,800 raised in Q4.

He has raised an additional $16,000 through his Friends of Lee Steinhauser political committee, with $5,000 raised in Q4.

Spencer is an unopposed incumbent on the Democratic side, and appears likely to await the winner of this Primary.

He has raised almost $38,000 in hard money, including $12,290 in Q4. His Friends of Leonard Spencer political committee has raised more than $96,600 since it was formed ahead of the 2024 election, including $18,700 in the fourth quarter, but more than $64,000 of that has been spent.

Spencer last year unseated Republican Rep. Carolina Amesty, the only race in Florida where a Democrat unseated a Republican incumbent. His margin of victory was within 2 percentage points.

Following two Democratic Representatives switching parties ahead of the Legislative Session, Spencer remains the only Democrat in the House currently representing a district where a majority of voters supported Republican Donald Trump in November.

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A.G. Gancarski and Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics contributed to this report.