WASHINGTON—In an exclusive interview with The Floridian, Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) declared that Sharia Law, the traditional system of Islamic jurisprudence, has "no place in America."
The Florida lawmaker suggested that Democrats supporting Sharia Law as a matter of tolerance are "wrong" and "stupid," clarifying, "I think we have to respect people's religion, but we have the rule of law in this country, and so you do not get to have a separate judicial system, a separate code of conduct. I mean, that is not the way it works in this country."
Sen. Scott challenged supporters of Sharia law in America to live in countries that practice it, asking, "Why don't they go back there if that is what they like?"
"I do not want to turn this country into a country in the Middle East where women have no rights, and there are basically no human rights," he added.
Florida Republicans have fiercely opposed the alleged influence of Sharia law in the United States.
In September 2025, Representative Randy Fine (R-FL) introducing the No Shari'a Law Act, which prohibits judges from making decisions influenced by any system aside from the U.S. Constitution.
Fine and several other Florida Republicans, including Representative Cory Mills (R-FL), helped Representative Chip Roy (R-TX) form the Sharia-Free America Caucus in the House earlier this year. Rep. Mills praised the effort, saying, "Freedom of religion does not mean freedom to impose a parallel legal system or undermine constitutional governance. No ideology religious or otherwise stands above the American law."
Representative Byron Donalds (R-FL), who is currently running for Florida governor, commented the rise of Sharia in the United States at the Chabad of Central Boca Raton in February, saying, "Look, Sharia law is incompatible with our constitution and with Western civilization. Full Stop. I think on that premise, there can't be any compromise."
