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With the votes counted and the results certified, now would be a good time to close the books on the special election to replace the late Mike Davis as the Florida House District 101 representative.

But we can’t.

A political organization that injected itself into the race still has not filed financial reports showing how much it spent promoting eventual winner Matt Hudson or, more distressingly, criticizing his opponents.

Florida’s New Direction, an “electioneering communication organization’’ as defined by state law, sent out a series of mailers lambasting Republican primary contender Eric Zichella for everything from his lack of experience to his lack of a wife and children.

But as of Friday, it still had not filed required financial disclosure forms with the Florida Secretary of State, ignoring several deadlines.

The financial statements would show how much money the group raised, who gave it and how it was spent.

The “who’’ is not much of a mystery. The group’s officers are affiliated with the Florida Association of Realtors and treasurer Tom Sponaugle conceded the group was formed specifically to help Hudson, a Realtor. But it would be revealing _ and in keeping with the law _ to know exactly how much the Realtors invested in getting Hudson elected.

So far, Florida’s New Direction’s flouting of campaign finance laws has drawn a major ho-hum from the state.

Sterling Ivey, spokesman for the Secretary of State’s Division of Elections, said Florida’s New Direction didn’t register with that office until Oct. 29. The next reporting deadline for the group will be Jan. 10, assuming it hasn’t been active in any political races.

But Florida’s New Direction was active, mailing out material as early as Oct. 23. Also, while the group may not have filed with the Division of Elections until Oct. 29, it registered as a corporation with the state on Oct. 9. What says the Division of Elections to that? “There’s nothing in our system to let us know this committee was working on the House district special election race,’’ Ivey said.

So by not registering with the Division of Elections until a week after it began its smear campaign against Zichella and by not tattling on itself, Florida’s New Direction avoids the fines that are supposedly imposed automatically for late filing.

Financial disclosure deadlines for candidates and committees active in the District 101 race fell on Oct. 15, Oct. 25, Nov. 5 and Nov. 15.

Fines for missing a deadline can amount to $50 per day for the first three days and $500 per day after that, according to Ivey. Fines cannot exceed 25 percent of a group’s total expenditures, Ivey said.

That leads to the possibility that Florida’s New Direction has made a strategic decision to not file any reports with the state and either hope to avoid detection or, at worst, pay what amounts to 25 percent extra for the work it did.

Sponaugle and others with the group have not returned phone calls about Florida’s New Direction after Sponaugle’s initial comments.

Given the Division of Election’s lack of knowledge about Florida’s New Direction’s activities, someone would have to file a complaint with the Florida Elections Commission, a separate agency, for further action to be taken, Ivey said.

At least two Collier County residents have expressed an interest in filing such a complaint but no one from the Elections Commission was available Friday to say whether a complaint has been received.

While Florida’s New Direction is the least forthcoming of the ECOs active in the abbreviated race to replace Davis, who died of cancer, it was by no means the only one.

Their participation drew the ire of candidates, including Hudson, who called them a distraction.

One, Citizens for Political Responsibility, launched a late drive against Hudson, much to the chagrin of Linda McDonald, the Democrat who Hudson defeated last week.

“I’m sick and tired of people attacking one another. I don’t want any part of the mudslinging,’’ McDonald said.

McDonald said she only learned of Citizens for Political Responsibility’s actions a day before the election. She called the group’s chairwoman to ask that it stop, but said she received little satisfaction. “The lady was very polite but didn’t really tell me anything,’’ McDonald said.

The nebulous nature of ECOs is also a concern to Chuck Mohlke, chairman of the Democratic Party, who said the party plans to seek changes in the way the groups operate.

“The process confounds candidates. They (ECOs) are not conducive to understanding,’’ Mohlke said.

E-mail Brent Batten at bebatten@naplesnews.com