Michael Carbonara has picked up the endorsement of HUCKPAC for America, the Huckabee family’s national political operation, in his bid for Florida’s 22nd Congressional District.
The nod lands a day before a high-profile South Florida event featuring Gov. Ron DeSantis and Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Carbonara is expected to appear alongside both Governors at the May 12 event.
The endorsement was announced by HUCKPAC for America Chair David Huckabee, brother of Sanders and son of former Arkansas Governor and current U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee.
“Our nation stands at a critical crossroads with so much at stake. It’s why we need conservative leaders like Michael Carbonara in Washington,” David Huckabee said. “Michael’s extraordinary success as an entrepreneur and his personal commitment to the values that build strong families and communities will represent Florida well in the House and help put our nation on the right track.”
The endorsement caps a busy stretch for Carbonara, who shifted his candidacy from CD 25 to CD 22 last week after DeSantis signed Florida’s redrawn congressional map on May 4.
The Southwest Ranches entrepreneur had previously been challenging U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz under the old lines; the new map moves him into a sprawling, geographically diverse open seat that stretches from Hendry County and the Immokalee area of Collier County through western Palm Beach County and into Broward. Much of the territory previously represented by Democratic U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel of West Palm Beach is now contained in the new CD 23.
Through the first quarter, Carbonara reported raising more than $2.5 million during his original CD 25 run, closing March with roughly $633,000 cash on hand — fuel he now brings into the new race.
“There’s a reason patriotic families like the Huckabees from across our country are getting on board with our campaign,” Carbonara said. “They understand what’s at stake, and they understand that this district, this state, and this nation need leaders who have actually built something.”
The HUCKPAC nod joins a coalition of local endorsements that already includes Weston Mayor and Florida League of Cities President Margaret “Peggy” Brown, Coconut Creek Vice Mayor and Army combat veteran John Brodie, Pompano Beach City Commissioner Audrey Fesik, Fort Lauderdale City Commissioner John Herbst, the Fort Lauderdale Young Republicans, and Moms for Liberty.
The combined rollout — a national PAC endorsement, a joint event with two sitting Governors, and a deep bench of South Florida elected officials — signals that Carbonara is moving fast to consolidate establishment Republican support in CD 22 before any serious primary challenger gets traction. The Republican Primary is Aug. 18.
Carbonara, who built companies in payments, technology, genetics and fertility services, lives in Southwest Ranches with his wife and their children.
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