Republican Infighting Now the Only Fight Worth Watching

Guest Correspondence

Photo courtesy Pixabay.

Florida for decades served as America’s most important swing state. The last two election cycles proved that era to be over, but the consequence for Republicans in state and local politics may not always taste sweet.

We now live in a period where the great political battles in Florida will be waged not between the left and right but among those seeking control of the Republican Party and its message. One such conflict will be on full display Monday in Tallahassee when state lawmakers convene  for a Special Session called by Gov. Ron DeSantis but which legislative leaders publicly criticized as premature and, in writing, “irresponsible.”

The actual legislative agenda for this almost seems inconsequential. DeSantis wants immigration enforcement powers, petition process reforms and condo regulation fixes— but above all else he demands credit for enacting these changes. My guess is Republican supermajorities largely agree with DeSantis on matters or police, more or less, but have no interest in giving a lame duck Governor and failed presidential candidate the ability to write legislation for the Legislature to rubber stamp.

Local lawmakers tell me it’s more likely the House and Senate gavel in and out without passing anything than it is that they rush a laundry list of bills to DeSantis’ desk in under a week. The highest estimates give this Special Session a 50/50 chance of passing anything. I still wonder if take up part of the agenda, empowering Florida law enforcement with deportation ability, but only because President Donald Trump wants that done. And if that passes, lawmakers will credit Trump, not DeSantis.

In a sense, this mirrors a coming battle in the 2026 election cycle, when many anticipate heated Republican primaries for every statewide office which will pit a DeSantis-backed choice against one endorsed by Trump. With the General Election meaningless, may as well make August a bloodbath.

Messy primaries will include the Chief Financial Officer race, where state Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, already filed to run in 2026 with Trump’s endorsement. But DeSantis before April ends will appoint someone to replace outgoing CFO Jimmy Patronis, and it probably won’t be Gruters. The Governor also just chose to appoint former Attorney General Ashley Moody as a Senator over Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, so expect a Trump-backed Primary challenge there, too. 

At the more local level, we also see a fight that grows each year as hard-right activists of south Sarasota County, including those in the orbit of former Trump National Security Adviser-turned-QAnon-King Michael Flynn, threaten the takeover of the Republican Party of Sarasota County. The same dynamic has happened in Republican Executive Committees around Florida the last two years

Current Republican Party of Florida Chair Evan Power (who himself secured the state Chair gavel amid tumult and fallout from Sarasota Republican Christian Ziegler’s sex scandal last year), cut off civil wars at the knees this year by suspending Republican Assembly members from REC elections. But expect those activists to come back in force next cycle. 

Of course, current RPOS Chair Jack Brill had the votes to win re-election as county Chair regardless of whether local Assembly members could vote or not. But he doesn’t plan to run again, meaning control of the county party will soon become another fervent battleground in 2026.

As for Democrats, the last meaningful utensil they have left in the governing toolbox in Florida is the popcorn bin. They will only have occasion now and then to decide which Republicans to help humiliate other Republicans. But come Monday, just such an opportunity may arise.

Jacob Ogles is contributing senior editor for SRQ Media.

Photo courtesy Pixabay.

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