Legislative Musical Chairs: All Florida Vacancies Caused by Trump's Cabinet Picks

Florida Lawmakers weeks after the general election are scrambling to fill government positions vacated by President-elect Donald Trump's Sunshine State-based cabinet picks.

So which positions are empty, and who wants to fill them?

U.S. Senate: Marco Rubio

One of Trump's first cabinet picks was Sen. Marco Rubio for his Secretary of State. This will leave the U.S. Senate position vacant, and require Gov. Ron DeSantis to appoint someone in his stead until a special election in 2026. Though DeSantis said he likely won't announce someone until early January, a few picks have floated around—many of which would further shuffle around legislative roles:

DeSantis could appoint himself, which would automatically elevate Lieutenant Gov. Jeanette Nuñez to governor and require her to appoint someone else to her former position. Another suggested possibility is Nuñez or Attorney General Ashley Moody, which in both cases would require him to appoint someone to fill their roles; his Chief of Staff James Uthmeier; Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump; former Rep. Matt Gaetz; state Sen. Jay Collins or Congressman Cory Mills, whose seats DeSantis would have to call special elections for to fill.

Again, DeSantis likely will not announce the position until January, days or weeks before Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20.

Congressional District 1: Matt Gaetz

Trump's most controversial administrative pick was Rep. Matt Gaetz, who represented Florida's first congressional district in the northwest quadrant. His nomination of Gaetz to be the next Attorney General caused a storm of outrage as many pointed to past allegations that Gaetz had paid and trafficked a minor for sex.

Regardless, Gaetz resigned his seat hours after announcing his nomination—and days before a salacious House Ethics report was due to be released. After Senators continued to express their displeasure with his nomination, with many refusing to confirm the appointment, Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration.

But the seat remains empty, meaning a special election primary for CD 1 will be held on Jan. 28 and the general will be on Apr. 1, bringing us to the next vacant slot:

Chief Financial Officer: Jimmy Patronis

Trump on Monday urged Patronis to run for the CD-1 seat, and by the afternoon he had tendered notice of his resignation as CFO, which will go into effect on Mar. 31. The endorsement caused at least three other Republican candidates to immediately withdraw from the race, including state Rep. Michelle Salzman who chose to keep her state House seat.

With the CFO position now vacant, Gov. Ron DeSantis must appoint someone before it goes up for election in 2026. State Sen. Joe Gruters, whom Trump endorsed for the role in '26, said that whether he is appointed or has to run against the appointee in two years, he still wants that seat.

But DeSantis and Gruters don't get along; most recently, the Governor's team blasted Gruters as being paid off by weed companies after he sided with Trump and Democrats over a DeSantis-maligned amendment that would have legalized recreational marijuana. Political insiders think DeSantis may appoint state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, who told Politico that he was already considering a '26 run, which would make it that much more difficult for Gruters to win in two years.

Meanwhile, Patronis' announcement with Trump's backing didn't scare off all candidates:

State House District 3: Joel Rudman

State Rep. Joel Rudman jumped into the CD-1 race soon after Gaetz dropped out, and is not deterred by the better-name-IDed Patronis wielding the future President's weight. Rudman, a doctor, resigned late Monday, posting to social media:

"The good people here deserve a strong field of candidates and a robust Republican debate, not a coronation. I’m in," he said, including a photo of his resignation letter. Soon after the news of Patronis' Trump endorsement, the Florida doctor posted, "Did I stutter?"

His resignation means that DeSantis will have to call a special election for his district, which Rudman just won in a landslide reelection.

Congressional District 6: Mike Waltz

Trump selected Rep. Mike Waltz as his next national security advisor in one of his early selections, leading Waltz to resign his congressional seat Monday afternoon. This leaves the conservative northeast district open and ripe for the taking.

Like the Gaetz seat, the special primary election will be on Jan. 28 and the general on Apr. 1.

But who wants it?

State Senate District 19: Randy Fine

State Sen. Randy Fine does, especially after Trump urged him to run Saturday with an encouraging "RUN, RANDY, RUN!" post on social media. So Tuesday morning, the newly-elected state Senator officially announced his candidacy for CD-6.

He sent in his resignation letter later Tuesday, though it won't go into effect until Mar. 31. This means he will be in the state Legislature for the first three weeks of the 2025 session. But this leaves Gov. DeSantis with another special election to schedule.

One name to keep an eye on is state Rep. Debbie Mayfield, who was termed out of SD-19 and instead ran and won a seat in House District 32 earlier this month. Though Florida law prohibits Senators from running for three consecutive re-election terms, it does not stop a termed-out Lawmaker from winning a seat in the lower chamber, resigning, and then running for her old seat again.

Watch this space.