Kevin Steele Pours $5 Million Of His Own Money Into His Campaign For Florida CFO

By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix

January 8, 2026

Pasco County Republican state Rep. Kevin Steele, the wealthiest member of the Florida Legislature, is putting $5 million of his own personal funds into his campaign for Florida chief financial officer.

“Florida families deserve leaders who are personally invested in delivering results, not just talking about them,” Steele said in a written statement released Thursday. “Floridians are paying too much in property taxes and property insurance, while government continues to grow and waste taxpayer dollars. That has to change.”

Steele is running against sitting Republican Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Blaise Ingoglia for the seat, in what is for now the most competitive statewide primary in Florida politics. Ingoglia was appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to the position last summer, and was endorsed by the governor for the seat last month.

Ingoglia been gaining significant media attention since his appointment by traveling to some of the state’s biggest media markets with his FAFO (Florida Agency for Fiscal Oversight) team. They’ve been auditing counties and municipalities, alleging that they have been wildly overspending over the past five years. It’s part of a campaign to push for a (yet to be written) constitutional amendment that would substantially reduce or eliminate property taxes for homesteaded properties.

Steele says that his campaign is also centered on lowering property taxes, along with addressing high property insurance costs and enforcing stronger oversight of state agencies to ensure transparency and accountability.

He is sponsoring a proposal (HJR 201) that would eliminate property taxes on homesteaded property. That resolution has advanced through two committees and has one more stop before getting to the House floor. It does not have a Senate companion at this point.

Steele, a retired tech executive, reported his net worth at more than $307 million in his 2024 financial disclosure forms. He said Thursday that his personal financial investment into his campaign “reinforces his independence and willingness to challenge the status quo in Tallahassee.”

“This campaign is about fighting for Floridians, not special interests,” Steele said. “I’m all in because Florida’s future is worth it.”

Meanwhile, Ingoglia said Wednesday that he intends to take his FAFO team back on the road to begin auditing the spending of local school boards.

“School boards should not be given a ‘free pass’ for their excessive and wasteful spending of your tax dollars,” Ingoglia wrote on his X account. “They should be held accountable also. Taxpayer dollars should be invested in kids and good teachers, not administrative bloat. Which school board should we FAFO first?”

While Ingoglia has the backing of Gov. DeSantis in the race, Steele is being supported by U.S. Sen. Rick Scott.

President Donald Trump has endorsed the incumbent Republicans running in the other two Florida Cabinet races on the ballot this year (AG James Uthmeier and Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson), but has yet to weigh in on the CFO race. The Republican primary between Ingoglia and Steele takes place on Aug. 18.

No Democrat has yet to enter the race.

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