As Trump picks Florida men for top jobs, new political possibilities open up in the Sunshine State

[November 15, 2024]  By KATE PAYNE

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — As President-elect Donald Trump names picks for his new administration from his private club in Palm Beach and prepares to return to the White House, he’s bringing the Sunshine State with him.

With Sen. Marco Rubio tapped to be the next secretary of state, Rep. Matt Gaetz nominated to be attorney general, and Rep. Mike Waltz in line to be national security adviser, Trump’s reliance on Floridians is setting off a chain reaction that's opening up new possibilities in the state in 2026 and beyond — and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, Trump’s onetime challenger for the party’s presidential nomination, will have a key role to play.

Gaetz’s nomination to lead the Department of Justice, which once investigated him for allegations of sex trafficking, sent a shock wave through Washington, and his confirmation to be the country’s top law enforcement officer is not a done deal. But the vacancy for his seat in northwest Florida’s 1st Congressional District is, after Gaetz resigned Wednesday night. That decision effectively ended a House Ethics Committee investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, though the allegations could resurface in Senate confirmation hearings. Gaetz has categorically denied them all.

Waltz, a three-term congressman who represents Florida’s 6th Congressional District south of Jacksonville, has not yet resigned his seat and neither has Rubio — though Florida Republicans hoping to leverage the upcoming openings are running the if-then calculations.

Under federal and state law, the processes for filling vacancies in the U.S. House and Senate are different. To fill an open House seat, Florida must hold a special election where voters will be able to directly choose their next representative. On the Senate side, DeSantis will get to appoint someone to take over Rubio’s seat, assuming his colleagues confirm him as secretary of state. Rubio's replacement would hold the seat until the next regularly scheduled election in 2026.

Among the names being floated for Rubio’s seat: DeSantis himself.

“I’m not familiar with anything that prevents him from naming himself,” said Tallahassee-based elections lawyer Ron Meyer, “other than hubris, I suppose.”

DeSantis' term as governor runs out in 2026, putting the state's top executive office back on the ballot and offering its own political possibilities. With DeSantis expected to consider another presidential run in 2028, Florida politicos say it may not be to his advantage to appoint himself to the Senate. Another name being floated is first lady Casey DeSantis, whose own political ambition has long been a topic of speculation.

Speaking to students at Notre Dame the week before the Rubio pick was announced, DeSantis demurred when asked whether he would consider joining the new Trump administration.

"I’m not seeking anything,” DeSantis said. “I’ve got a great job in the state of Florida. … How can I best make a difference? I think, you know, given where we are, I think me quarterbacking the Sunshine State is probably how I make the biggest difference.”

 Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump greets Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., during a campaign rally at J.S. Dorton Arena, Nov. 4, 2024, in Raleigh, N.C. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Other possible nominees include DeSantis' lieutenant governor Jeanette Nuńez — though she'd be in line to become the state's first female governor if DeSantis nominated himself — or state Attorney General Ashley Moody. A name being floated in Trump's orbit is Lara Trump, the president-elect’s daughter-in-law, who was his pick to co-chair the Republican National Committee and who lives in Palm Beach County with her husband Eric.

As far as filling the House seats, state officials haven't yet announced the dates for a special election, apart from saying they want to move quickly.

“I’ve instructed Secretary of State Cord Byrd to formulate and announce a schedule for the upcoming special elections immediately,” DeSantis posted on social media on Thursday.

Byrd said on social media that his team is working on it and will have a schedule posted soon.

In announcing Gaetz's resignation on Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson framed the move as a way to fill the vacancy quickly as Republicans work to leverage their hard-fought but thin majority next year.

Florida elections experts told The Associated Press the process will still likely take months, due to statutory requirements to publicize the elections, mail ballots to military and overseas voters and certify primary results — as well as the logistical challenges of carrying out another election right after a busy presidential cycle. That could make the Republicans' thin House majority even thinner, at least for the first part of 2025.

“There is a bit of flexibility for a few of these things, but it seems like there’s no practical way of having a replacement House member in less than half a year,” said Michael Morley, an elections law expert and professor at Florida State University's College of Law.

The state's most recent special election to fill a U.S. House seat vacancy took 10 weeks between the primary election and the general alone, according to state records.
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Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

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