Gov. Ron DeSantis could soon have a Marco Rubio-sized hole to fill in the U.S. Senate.
Rubio is widely reported to be President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to be the next Secretary of State. Those same reports say the decision isn’t final, but if Rubio is selected and confirmed by his colleagues in the U.S. Senate, DeSantis would get to name his replacement.
It would present DeSantis, who ran against Trump for the GOP nomination in 2024 and lost, with a major decision that could affect his possible future aspirations to run for President in 2028.
The person selected would serve until 2026, when a special election would be held to serve out the remaining two years of Rubio’s term. DeSantis, a former U.S House member, could pick someone who would run in 2026, or someone who would be a placeholder if he chose to attempt to return to Washington ahead of a potential 2028 run for President.
The initial list of possible picks includes Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody and DeSantis’ chief of staff James Uthmeier.
Nuñez is from Miami and has Cuban-American heritage, like Rubio.
Moody has been a DeSantis loyalist and Uthmeier just helped lead the effort to kill a pair of ballot measures opposed by DeSantis that were aimed at legalizing recreational marijuana and installing a right to an abortion in the state constitution.
Could DeSantis appoint himself to be the next US senator?
DeSantis could also appoint himself or his wife, Casey, but DeSantis has often joked about “recovering” from his time in Congress and said he prefers being a state executive who is able to get more done.
There’s also pressure Trump and his allies could put on DeSantis to name a preferred replacement. The name of Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump – a Florida resident and co-chair of the Republican National Committee – is already being floated by his supporters.
Lara Trump “needs to be the nominated replacement by (DeSantis) for Rubio,” U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-St. Petersburg, posted on X. “She will keep the seat and avoid a messy primary for FLORIDA. Well spoken. Kicked butt on election integrity. Etc.”
To be sure, DeSantis has previously eyed Rubio’s Senate seat.
In 2016, two years before he ran for governor, he initially ran for the seat Rubio said he would leave as he ran for the presidency that year. Rubio initially said he wouldn’t run for reelection if he lost the bid for the GOP nomination, but had a change of heart.
Rubio’s decision led DeSantis to opt to run for reelection to the U.S. House instead.
The last time a sitting Florida governor fulfilled a vacancy in the U.S. Senate was in 2009, when then-Gov. Charlie Crist picked chief of staff George LeMieux to replace U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, who resigned.
Crist ran for the seat in 2010, but as Rubio garnered more and more support within the GOP, Crist left the party to run as an independent, ultimately losing to Rubio.
DeSantis is on a trade mission in Italy and won’t return to Florida until Friday. When he gets back he’ll have the possibility of an open Senate seat confronting him.
He could also have to call a special election to replace U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz, R-St. Augustine Beach, whom Trump has asked to be National Security Advisor.
Gray Rohrer is a reporter with the USA TODAY Network-Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at grohrer@gannett.com. Follow him on X: @GrayRohrer.
