A.G. Gancarski
Neither Senate President Ben Albritton nor House Speaker Daniel Perez is tipping his hand as to who he supports in next year’s Republican gubernatorial Primary.
Albritton told a reporter Tuesday that it’s his “first day of Session” when asked about how he felt about the prospect of Gov. Ron DeSantis promoting First Lady Casey DeSantis as the next Governor.
The Wauchula Republican invoked the name of previous Senate President Bill Galvano in justifying his neutral stance.
“I am not a golfer,” Albritton said. “But his saying was you play the hole you’re on. And right now, I’m on a very important one and my mission is to do a good job for the Florida Senate, to do a good job for Floridians.”
He said the Senate “had a very important agenda,” which is “about Floridians … especially those that many times or at least sometimes may fall through the cracks.”
“We’ll see how that works out right now,” Albritton said. “I’m certainly busy being Senate President.”
Perez offered similar deflections.
“I haven’t heard that from the governor personally. I don’t know that he’s been promoting his wife as a as a successor. I think that’s more speculation than anything at this point. If the First Lady chooses to run for governor, then she’ll have every ability to run as a candidate, but him and I have not had that discussion,” the Speaker said.
The leaders’ avoidance of a question about the looming Republican race for Governor may provide a template for legislators who recognize the perils of navigating the gap between the Governor’s promotion of the First Lady and President Donald Trump’s backing of U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds.
A few legislators have endorsed Donalds. State Sen. Randy Fine and state Reps. Yvette Benarroch, Berny Jacques, Toby Overdorf and Juan Porras are among them.
Others are quieter but seemingly on board, including a member of leadership who tells Florida Politics that the Governor’s management style rankles House Republicans and see Casey DeSantis as a third term bid by the incumbent.
But with Ron DeSantis having the ultimate say over the legislatively approved budget and what bills may become law, there is wisdom in holding one’s opinion on the 2026 race close to the vest.
