Casey DeSantis is clearly running for Florida governor

Palm Beach, Florida

Casey DeSantis is running for Florida governor. That is simply a matter of accepted knowledge for the West Palm Beach denizens gathered at the Flagler Museum on a breezy evening among the palm trees. But it’s still astonishing to see how quickly she adapts to the role and inhabits it in a bright pink pantsuit. The far more telegenic half of the gubernatorial team, who benefits from a Myers-Briggs score that begins with “E” instead of “I,” delivered a speech last week that put a strong emphasis on “we” at every juncture — what “we” accomplished for Florida, how “we” pushed back against Joe Biden’s foolishness and how close “we” believe the loss of Florida’s model could be should Democrats prevail in the state her husband helped turn bright flaming red. Laura Ingraham, who pre-taped her nightly show to make it to the event, clapped from the front table.

Floridians may not be surprised by this, but on the national scale, the shock could be significant. No matter: “With Casey, we would just run it back all over again,” one conservative influencer tells me about her prospects. The DeSantis supporters, hardened by the 2024 trail, are ready and eager. And interestingly enough, a top pollster (whose clients include other successful statewide politicians) tells me: “What’s interesting about Ron is that alone among the 2024 challengers, no one dislikes him — it just wasn’t his turn, but Florida still loves him.”

By extant property, will they love Casey as well? It’s quite a roll of the dice for someone with her notable lack of electoral experience to jump in for the big job. And complicating matters is that “Truth” from the Donald, who has, by dint of naming one Floridian after another to his cabinet — including Marco Rubio, Mike Waltz, Pam Bondi and Matt Gaetz (peace be upon him) — cleared a path for his favored nominee, the charismatic and eminently viral Byron Donalds. “Byron Donalds would be a truly Great and Powerful Governor for Florida and, should he decide to run, will have my Complete and Total Endorsement,” Trump posted last week. “RUN, BYRON, RUN!” The representative told CPAC to stay tuned, but everyone anticipates he’ll be getting in.

But for Ron, he’s having none of it — telling reporters yesterday that his wife is “somebody that has, I think, the intestinal fortitude and the dedication to conservative principles. Anything we’ve accomplished, she’d be able to take to the next level.” This goes beyond mere avoidance of the guest room or the couch — it’s clear DeSantis has a strong preference in this race, and it’s at odds with one of the most ambitious members of the House, who even put his name into the speaker’s race at one point last year.

For Donalds, though, there are problems lurking at the side of his path to the governorship. He will have to navigate a race that may not just pit him against a popular young first lady who is a calculated political operator in her own right, and can effectively run on the culture war issues that animate Republicans at the moment, but potentially against that sidelined foe as well. Matt Gaetz’s podcast career seems to be dying in its cradle, described by some Floridians as “awkward” “clunky” and “just plain boring.” Given his access to resources thanks to his family wealth, why not throw your cardigan in the ring? A right-flanked Donalds could be far more beatable than one running unopposed — and the DeSantis mafia could be counting on that factor to be decisive.

The most fascinating element of this could be a replay of a clash that never happened. Because Don never took the debate stage opposite Ron, the GOP electorate was denied the chance to see the two men go toe to toe. Now, Florida may be on the cusp of a battle by surrogate. Prepare to choose your champion, Sunshine State.