DeSantis Taps Moody for Senate Seat

TALLAHASSEE — Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody was named Thursday by Gov. Ron DeSantis to replace U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, who is in line to become President-elect Donald Trump’s secretary of state.

Moody, a Republican who was first elected attorney general in 2018, has been a close ally of DeSantis in fights against the Biden administration on issues such as immigration enforcement. DeSantis also said he will appoint his chief of staff, James Uthmeier, to succeed Moody as attorney general.

During an announcement in Orlando, DeSantis said Moody “understands the gravity of the moment.” Trump will be inaugurated Monday, and Republicans control both houses of Congress.

“We may not have an opportunity like this in the near future,” DeSantis said. “This is a once-in-a-decade, maybe even once-in-a-generation opportunity. And this current Congress is ultimately going to determine whether we do usher in that revival of the American experiment or it is just going to be status quo.”

Moody responded, “I will not let you down. I will not let the citizens of Florida down, and I will not let my country down.”

Moody said she will bring “the same persistence and passion and tenacity, as a United States senator that I have as Florida’s attorney general” and that she planned to “show up and fight for this nation and fight for President Trump to deliver the American first agenda on day one.”

DeSantis said he expects to name Uthmeier as Moody’s replacement when the position is “available.” Rubio still needs U.S. Senate confirmation as secretary of state, though he is expected to be easily approved.

Uthmeier has worked in the governor’s office since 2019, though he took a leave of absence to run DeSantis’ unsuccessful 2024 presidential campaign. Uthmeier previously worked as a senior adviser under then-U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and at the Washington-based law firm Jones Day.

DeSantis also has a second state Cabinet appointment to make, as Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis will leave office March 31. Patronis is running in a special election in Northwest Florida’s Congressional District 1.

Though Rubio was elected to a six-year term in 2022, his departure will lead to the U.S. Senate seat going on the 2026 ballot. The attorney general and chief financial officer positions already were scheduled to go on the 2026 ballot.

Trump tapped Rubio, a Miami-Dade County Republican, in November to become secretary of state. While speculation had swirled for weeks that Moody was the front-runner for the Senate appointment, DeSantis said he informed her of the decision Tuesday night.

Earlier, DeSantis eliminated several potential candidates, including U.S. Rep. Cory Mills, a Republican who has said he plans to run for the Senate in 2026, and U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla.. DeSantis on Thursday also said he considered Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd and state Sen. Jay Collins, R-Tampa.https://486d75be03967626527d2d26c79612db.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-40/html/container.html

Republicans and groups such as the Florida Chamber of Commerce and Americans for Prosperity-Florida quickly praised DeSantis’ selection of Moody.

Republican Party of Florida Chairman Evan Power described her as “a critical voice that will help pass President-elect Trump’s common sense legislative priorities.”

Meanwhile, Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried said Moody will take orders from Trump rather than Floridians and described her appointment as a potential placeholder for DeSantis to run when the seat is up for election. Fried cited issues such as Moody’s opposition to a November ballot proposal, known as Amendment 4, that would have enshrined abortion rights in the state Constitution. The proposal fell short of receiving the required support of 60 percent of voters.

“As attorney general, Ashley ignored the growing property insurance crisis and let wealthy corporations rip off Floridians,” Fried said in a statement. “Instead, she spent her time chasing political attention and currying favor with the far right. She worked for over a year to silence the voices of Floridians who wanted Amendment 4 on the ballot, weaponizing state law and the Florida Constitution to score the political points that got her this appointment.”

Moody, 49, handily defeated Democrats in her 2018 and 2022 races for attorney general. She previously worked as an assistant U.S. attorney and as a Hillsborough County circuit judge.

DeSantis said he wanted an appointee who would be strong on immigration enforcement, support cutting the federal bureaucracy and fight “the woke agenda.”

“I wanted somebody with a demonstrated record of delivering results on those important issues,” DeSantis said.

As attorney general, Moody filed numerous lawsuits that aligned with DeSantis’ priorities, including cases against the Biden administration on immigration enforcement. She also took positions on issues such as opposing COVID-19 vaccination mandates and opposing efforts to allow recreational marijuana in Florida.

Moody on Thursday backed DeSantis in his assertion that the federal government has become too large.

“The only way to return this country to the people, the people who govern it, is to make sure we have a strong Congress doing its job, passing laws and actually approving the regulations that these unelected bureaucrats are trying to cram down on the American people,” Moody said.

A graduate of the University of Florida, where she earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting, and its law school, Moody is the mother of two children and is married to Justin Duralia, deputy chief of the Plant City Police Department. Duralia is also a former Drug Enforcement Administration deputy chief.