A Republican state senator from Florida introduced an amendment on Tuesday that, should the state’s governor Ron DeSantis decide to run for president in 2024, may remove one technical barrier.
A revision was made to the “resign to run” law’s phrasing by Florida State Senator Travis Hutson so that it would not apply to “Persons seeking the office of President or Vice President of the United States.”
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Currently, a public official in Florida is not permitted to run for an office whose term of office overlaps the person’s existing position without first submitting a letter of resignation.
That letter would need to be sent in DeSantis’ instance 10 days before Florida’s deadline for presidential qualifying at the beginning of December. Even if DeSantis lost the primary or general election, his resignation would be final and take effect on the day the next president is sworn in, in 2025.
According to Hutson’s amendment, “The amendments made to s. 99.012, Florida Statutes, by this act are intended to clarify existing law.”
When then-Republican Governor Charlie Crist was in the race to be John McCain’s running mate for the 2008 GOP nomination, the state overturned the “resign-to-run” rule in 2007. In 2018, Republican former governor Rick Scott, former governor signed legislation that reinstated this rule.
If the change is approved, it would go into effect on July 1. The amendment and the entire election law measure will be discussed and debated on Wednesday, with a vote perhaps taking place that day or on Thursday.
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Republican Kathleen Passidomo, president of the Florida state Senate, said in late March that she was still assessing whether modifications to the resign-to-run statute were necessary.
DeSantis has said that he won’t make up his mind about running for president in 2024 until after the legislative session concludes in early May. He is now on an international business trade trip in Asia. DeSantis has been to all four early presidential primary states this year: Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. He is on a promotional trip for his new book and what he calls the “Florida Blueprint.”
“In November, I was re-elected. DeSantis told the Nikkei Asia news organization in Tokyo on Tuesday, “We got a great landslide victory. No announcements until after the legislative session has ended. So simply pay attention.”
Reprinted with permission. View this story and more on WayneDupree.com.
