James Uthmeier to officially kick off AG campaign next week

James Uthmeier, the former Chief of Staff to Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed as Attorney General after former AG Ashley Moody was appointed to the U.S. Senate, will officially kick off his 2026 campaign for the job next week on Tuesday, March 11.

The event will be held at The Governor’s Inn, 209 S. Adams St., Tallahassee, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Uthmeier was sworn in as Attorney General earlier this month, replacing Moody, who replaced former U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio after he was tapped to serve as President Donald Trump’s Secretary of State. His appointment will fill the remaining portion of Moody’s term through 2026, meaning Uthmeier will have to seek election to the seat in 2026 for a full term.

Uthmeier filed for that race last week. His appointment to the remainder of the current term will not count toward term limits, meaning that if he is elected, he will have the opportunity to serve nearly 10 years as Attorney General, not just eight.

It is Uthmeier’s first bid for public office, but he has plenty of experience running statewide campaigns for others. Earlier this month, he launched the political committee Friends of James Uthmeier in anticipation of his statewide run.

He also chairs the still-active Florida Freedom Fund, which last year campaigned successfully to defeat ballot measures that sought to expand access to abortions and marijuana. That committee closed 2024 with over $2.11 million cash on hand, though DeSantis has signaled he would like to use that committee to weigh in during Republican Primary elections next year.

Uthmeier previously chaired Keep Florida Clean, Inc., which focused last year on defeating the marijuana ballot measure. That committee was disbanded last week but has not yet released its final expenditure reports. A disbandment letter stated all remaining funding, about $121,000 as of the end of 2024, will be distributed into a 527 political organization.

Supporting Uthmeier’s race by serving on his campaign launch host committee are several top power brokers in GOP politics, including GrayRobinson attorney Ashley Lukis and her husband, political consultant Adrian Lukis; strategist Slater Bayliss and his wife, Sara; Florida Association of Counties Executive Director Ginger Delegal and her husband, government relations pro Mark Delegal; consultant Josh Aubuchon; Capital City Consulting Co-founder Ron LaFace; Capital City Consulting Managing Partner Scott Ross and his wife, political consultant Ashley Ross; Capital City Consulting Co-founder Nick Iarossi; lobbyist Derek Whitis and his wife, consultant Courtney Whitis; lobbyist Cameron Yarbrough and his wife, Jamie; lobbyist Jared Rosenstein; the Southern Group’s Monte Stevens; Capital City Consulting lobbyist and former DeSantis senior advisor Drew Meiner; and government relations pro Rhett O’Doski, among others.

The Florida Chamber of Commerce is also listed as a host for Uthmeier’s kickoff.

Maximum individual contributions to Uthmeier’s campaign are $3,000, plus another $3,000 per business entity. Donations over those limits can be made to Uthmeier’s committee, Friends of James Uthmeier.

So far, he’s the only candidate to run for the Attorney General post, though that could change. Regardless, he could enjoy the benefits of incumbency, serving as Florida’s top legal officer into next year’s Republican Primary and General Election.

Other candidates rumored to be considering a run include former Florida House Speakers Chris Sprowls and Paul Renner, as well as former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz.

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Florida Politics reporter Jacob Ogles contributed to this report.