Cathy Higgins

FL House — District 89

South Palm Beach County

R Nominee

★★★★☆

125 / 165 points

Integrity & Legal Record

Professional & Business Transparency

Policy & Platform Consistency

Community Engagement & Character

Campaign Transparency

Issue-Based Positions

Challenger (lifelong HD-89 resident, born in West Palm Beach, raised in Lake Worth; settled in Atlantis, FL; served 12 years on the Atlantis City Council, including 3 years as the city's first woman Mayor; built a dance program at The King's Academy; co-owns two successful local small businesses with husband Tim, employing nearly 400 people; as Mayor/Councilwoman, held the line on taxes, maintained financial reserves, and delivered park/safety/infrastructure improvements; running against Jeff Buongiorno in the R primary for HD-89)

Last updated: 2026-08-21

Every candidate is researched identically across six categories using only public records and candidate-submitted information. No candidate is endorsed. Read the full methodology.

Integrity & Legal Record 25 / 25

Criminal History

`[NOT FOUND — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Cathy Higgins" HD-89 Atlantis arrested OR convicted OR indicted — 2026-08-14]`. No adverse findings.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-14 — no adverse matches

Civil Court History

`[NOT FOUND — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Cathy Higgins" Atlantis lawsuit OR litigation — 2026-08-14]`. No adverse civil litigation found.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-14 — no adverse matches

Ethics Violations

No ethics complaints found, including during her 12 years on the Atlantis City Council and as Mayor.

Sources:

Google/news search: "Cathy Higgins" Atlantis ethics complaint — 2026-08-14 — no adverse matches
Florida Commission on Ethics — https://ethics.state.fl.us/Complaints/Complaints.aspx — 2026-08-14

Campaign Finance Violations

`[NOT FOUND — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Cathy Higgins" HD-89 campaign finance violation — 2026-08-14]`. No violation records found.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-14 — no adverse matches

Residency Confirmed

Documented lifelong HD-89 resident, currently residing in Atlantis, FL (Palm Beach County), consistent with her 12 years of local elected service there.

Sources:

Campaign website (votecathyhiggins.com) — 2026-08-14

Investigated and ruled out: unrelated same/similar-name individuals (Eileen Higgins, Geary Higgins, Cathy Latham).
Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate per the roster, and the CIVICS Disclosure Survey PDF answers have not yet been extracted/indexed per-candidate in general.

Professional & Business Transparency 22 / 25

Business Ownership

Higgins and her husband Timothy D. Higgins co-own two Palm Beach County small businesses employing nearly 400 people combined: - East Coast Protection Inc. (Sunbiz Document #P09000047655, FEI/EIN 80-0428393) — a security-guard services company filed 06/01/2009, status ACTIVE, principal address 106 Glenbrook Ct., Atlantis, FL. Officers confirmed via Sunbiz: Timothy D. Higgins (Director/President) and Catherine J. Higgins (Vice President). Registered Agent is Catherine James Higgins. - East Coast Valet, Inc. — a valet/concierge/pool-attendant/shuttle service company, per company material founded by Timothy Higgins in 1989, headquartered at 614 N Dixie Hwy, Lantana, FL. `[Sunbiz primary-source confirmation NOT COMPLETED — search.sunbiz.org blocked on two attempts this session, both by entity name and by a document number (S01633) surfaced in a secondary-source search-result URL]`. Confirmed via BBB business profile (Atlantis, FL), company website (eastcoastvalet.com), and LinkedIn.

Sources:

Florida Sunbiz (search.sunbiz.org) — Detail by Entity Name, EAST COAST PROTECTION INC., Document #P09000047655 — 2026-08-21
Better Business Bureau — "East Coast Valet, Inc." business profile, Atlantis, FL — 2026-08-21
eastcoastvalet.com — "About Us" — 2026-08-21
LinkedIn — "Timothy Higgins - East Coast Valet, Inc. and East Coast Protection, Inc." — 2026-08-21

⚠️ REVIEW FLAG — East Coast Valet, Inc. Sunbiz registration not directly confirmed this session (tooling block); recommend a manual recheck.

Financial Conflicts of Interest

No government-contract overlap identified. Both businesses are private-sector security/hospitality services with no apparent nexus to state legislative contracting authority. As a former Atlantis City Councilwoman/Mayor (12 years), no conflict between her municipal service and either business was found.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search: "Cathy Higgins" OR "East Coast Protection" OR "East Coast Valet" Atlantis government contract — 2026-08-21 — no matches

Bankruptcy History

`[NOT FOUND]`. No personal or business bankruptcy filings located for either Higgins or either business.

Sources:

CourtListener (courtlistener.com) — search "Timothy Higgins" "Catherine Higgins" Atlantis — 2026-08-21 — 0 results
CourtListener (courtlistener.com) — search "Higgins" "East Coast Valet" — 2026-08-21 — 0 results

Tax Liens

`[NOT FOUND]`. No federal or state tax lien records located. Per this project's standing methodology, tax liens are inconsistently indexed online, so this absence of results is not presented as a confirmed clean record.

Sources:

CourtListener (courtlistener.com) — same searches as above — 2026-08-21 — 0 results

Board Memberships

`[NOT FOUND — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Cathy Higgins" Atlantis board member/director nonprofit — 2026-08-21]`. No outside corporate or nonprofit board membership identified beyond her own two businesses and her prior elected City Council/Mayor role (already documented in Category 1).

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-21 — no additional matches

⚠️ TOOLING BLOCK: Sunbiz confirmed East Coast Protection Inc. but blocked (2 attempts) on East Coast Valet, Inc.; recommend a manual recheck of the latter's corporate registration.
Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.

Policy & Platform Consistency 18 / 20

Voting Record

Higgins is a non-incumbent at the state level (she has never served in the FL Legislature), though she brings a substantive 12-year local record as Atlantis City Councilwoman/Mayor, during which she held the line on taxes, maintained financial reserves, and delivered park/safety/infrastructure improvements (documented in Category 1). `[NO STATE VOTING RECORD — NON-INCUMBENT AT STATE LEVEL]`. Her state-legislative platform is specific: household costs, support for police, teacher pay and school choice, trimming government spending, and steering development to protect infrastructure and green space.

Sources:

Florida Politics — "2 Republicans file for HD 89, targeting one of Florida's most flippable Democratic seats" — 2026-08-21
votecathyhiggins.com — campaign platform — 2026-08-21

Position Consistency

`[No documented state-level position shifts were identified — searched: nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-21]`. Her stated fiscal-conservative platform (tax restraint, spending discipline) is consistent with her documented 12-year record as Atlantis Mayor/Councilwoman (held the line on taxes, maintained reserves).

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-21 — no adverse matches

Flip-Flops

`[NOT FOUND — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Cathy Higgins" HD-89 flip-flop reversed position — 2026-08-21]`. No documented policy reversal was identified.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-21 — no matches

Endorsements

Received: Won the GOP primary decisively (over 67% against Jeff Buongiorno); expected to draw, and reportedly already receiving, institutional support from incoming House Speaker Sam Garrison and the Florida House Republican Campaign Committee, including $1,500 in in-kind aid from the Committee. `[A comprehensive endorsements-received list beyond this was NOT FOUND; Endorsements given — NOT FOUND — 2026-08-21]`.

Sources:

Florida Politics — "Cathy Higgins wins GOP Primary for HD 89 in Palm Beach County" — 2026-08-21

None this pass.
Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.

Community Engagement & Character 17 / 25

Community Involvement

Higgins has a documented, 12-year cumulative local elected-leadership record (Atlantis City Council, including 3 years as Mayor, already detailed in her profile summary and Category 3), plus building a dance program at The King's Academy (a private Christian school) — a sustained, hands-on civic/educational commitment predating her state-level candidacy.

Sources:

Florida Politics — "Cathy Higgins wins GOP Primary for HD 89 in Palm Beach County" — 2026-08-24

Veteran / First Responder Service

`[NOT FOUND — no military or first-responder service background documented — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Cathy Higgins" HD-89 military veteran — 2026-08-24]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-24 — no matches

Faith-Based Involvement (scored on character consistency)

A specific, self-described personal faith identity: she describes herself as "a devoted Christian, wife, and mother of two accomplished daughters." Her documented dance-program building at The King's Academy (a Christian school) is a specific, sustained, in-person commitment consistent with that stated identity; her 12-year record of fiscal discipline as Mayor (holding the line on taxes, maintaining reserves, already documented in Category 3) is also consistent with her stated values. No contradictions identified.

Sources:

Florida Politics — as above — 2026-08-24

Debates / Town Halls

`[No documented debate/town hall invitations or appearances for the 2026 general election against Tendrich were found this pass — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Cathy Higgins" HD-89 debate 2026 — 2026-08-24]`. This district has been flagged by analysts as "the House's most vulnerable Democratic seat" (already noted in Category 3).

Sources:

Florida Politics — as above — 2026-08-24

⚠️ REVIEW FLAG — No debate coverage found for this competitive race; recommend a follow-up closer to November.

Social Media Presence & Consistency

Active campaign presence via votecathyhiggins.com. `[A full manual review of her last 90 days of posts was NOT performed this pass — 2026-08-24]`. No inflammatory or contradictory content was surfaced in general search.

Sources:

votecathyhiggins.com — 2026-08-24

⚠️ REVIEW FLAG — Full manual 90-day audit not performed; recommend direct platform review if full certainty is required.

⚠️ REVIEW FLAG: No debate coverage or full social-media audit completed this pass; recommend follow-up closer to November for this competitive race.
Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.

Campaign Transparency 17 / 25

Top Donors / Donor Composition

Higgins raised more than $18,000 and spent more than $14,000 through her campaign account, with $1,500 in in-kind aid from the Florida House Republican Campaign Committee. `[Detailed individual-donor composition NOT FOUND — searched: Florida Division of Elections, Transparency USA — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Florida Politics — "Cathy Higgins wins GOP Primary for HD 89 in Palm Beach County" — 2026-08-26

PAC / LLC / Funneling Structures

`[PAC NOTED — Florida House Republican Campaign Committee — $1,500 in-kind — Fully disclosed party-committee support — Florida Politics]`. No LLC, dark-money, or foreign-adjacent funding identified.

Sources:

Florida Politics — as above — 2026-08-26

Advertising Spend

Total expenditures of $14,000+ are modest and proportionate to a State House race.

Sources:

Florida Politics — as above — 2026-08-26

Grassroots Engagement

`[No documented door-knocking, phone-banking, or in-person voter-contact ground game located — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Cathy Higgins" HD-89 campaign volunteer 2026 — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26 — no matches

Donations to Political Figures

`[NOT FOUND — searched: Florida Division of Elections, nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26 — no matches

No adverse findings.
Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.

Issue-Based Positions 26 / 40

2A Rights Score

`[NO STATED POSITION FOUND — scored 3 per protocol — sources searched: NRA, GOA, campaign website (votecathyhiggins.com) — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26 — no matches

Pro-Life / Pro-Family Score

`[NO STATED POSITION FOUND — scored 3 per protocol — sources searched: SBA Pro-Life America, campaign website — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26 — no matches

Fiscal Conservatism Score

As Atlantis Mayor/Council member, "held the line on taxes," "maintained healthy financial reserves for emergencies"; campaign platform commits to "eliminating government waste and keeping taxes low."

Sources:

votecathyhiggins.com — 2026-08-26

Parental Rights Score

`[NO STATED POSITION FOUND — scored 3 per protocol — sources searched: Moms for Liberty, campaign website — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26 — no matches

Election Integrity Position

`[NO STATED POSITION FOUND — scored 3 per protocol — sources searched: campaign website, nationwide news search — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26 — no matches

Housing / Insurance Position

Platform pledges to "fight rising costs so families and seniors can afford to stay in the communities they love," without a specific policy mechanism identified this session.

Sources:

votecathyhiggins.com — 2026-08-26

Education / School Choice Position

`[NO STATED POSITION FOUND — scored 3 per protocol — sources searched: Parents Defending Education, campaign website — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26 — no matches

Environment / Everglades Position

`[NO STATED POSITION FOUND — scored 3 per protocol — sources searched: campaign website, nationwide news search — 2026-08-26]`.

Sources:

Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-26 — no matches

Strongest documented position is fiscal conservatism, drawing on a real 12-year municipal record; other metrics undocumented this session.
Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.

Other candidates in this race — FL House — District 89

Debra Tendrich (DEM)View the full FL House — District 89 race page →

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