Could a Panhandle congressional race mean Sarasota sees a Special Election of its own? That may sound like a non sequitur but it’s very much a possibility as political dominoes pushed by President-elect Donald Trump fall in Florida.

Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis qualified this month to run for former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz’s seat in the Pensacola area. Thanks to Florida’s resign-to-run law, Patronis had to resign his seat on the Florida Cabinet, effective March 31, to seek the federal office.

But that significantly impacts state Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, who already filed to run for CFO in 2026, when Patronis already faced term limits. With Trump’s endorsement in hand, Gruters appeared the frontrunner for the job in an increasingly Republican-controlled state.

But does Patronis’ early exit help or hurt Gruters? That’s up to Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The sitting Governor will name an appointment to fill out the last nearly two years of Patronis’ term and could go in one of multiple directions.

He could seriously damage Gruters’ ambitions by naming a political rival to the job. State Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill, comes up in conversation frequently, and Ingoglia acted as DeSantis’ chief liaison rallying presidential endorsements in the Florida Senate as Gruters became the first Florida lawmaker to endorse Trump.

The Governor in the past always placed significant premium on appointing people with whom he enjoyst personal influence. He also prefers people who intend to run for the job, not merely act as caretakers until the next election. Appointing Ingoglia would set him up as an incumbent heading into 2026, where he could serve as a foil to Gruters’ greatest political strengths. Both men are former Republican Party of Florida chairs, with overlapping influence in the donor world. 

Gruters already made clear he will run regardless. He faces his own term limit in 2026 for his Senate seat, and at age 47 clearly has no intention to retire from politics.

“Whether via appointment or at the ballot box in 2026, I look forward to running for CFO as President Trump’s endorsed candidate,” Gruters posted on X. “President Trump’s resounding victory is a mandate for change in this country and I will never stop fighting to Make America Great Again!”

That raises another prospect. DeSantis could appoint Gruters, which is where things become interesting fast in Sarasota. Gruters would quit from his Senate seat early, sparking a Special Election to serve out his term. 

Would DeSantis do this? His relationship with Gruters as state chair always seemed inexplicably rocky. He responded to Gruters’ Trump endorsement by vetoing every Sarasota project in the state budget months later, as one example.

Yet, there’s reason to think he may elevate the Sarasota Senator to the post. Now that Trump has won the presidency, overtures have been made to bring DeSantis into the President’s fold again. Most overt were conversations between Trump and DeSantis about the Governor becoming Defense Secretary, but that seems contingent on if Trump’s first nominee, Fox News host Pete Hegseth, doesn’t survive a high-profile confirmation fight.

A Defense appointment likely would require DeSantis defer on some high-profile appointments to Trump. The most attention has fallen on a potential naming of Lara Trump to replace U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio in the Senate. But another goodwill move would be installing Gruters, a close Trump ally, as CFO. 

This would set off a political feeding frenzy in Sarasota as every state lawmaker and municipal elected official ponders a run, each capable of opening positions to further elections and appointments.

And the dominoes keep falling.

Jacob Ogles is contributing senior editor of SRQ MEDIA.

Photo courts Republican Party of Sarasota: Sen. Joe Gruters at RNC.

Visit Sarasota County more than 12 years ago sought to provide the “insider” information at our brick-and-mortar visitor centers to help visitors where they were. This forward thinking led to the creation of the Visitor Information Vehicle, a small van which we lovingly nicknamed our VIV. 

Our VIV housed visitor guides, maps and brochures and was always accompanied by a dedicated member of our team who served as an ambassador for Sarasota County. Chances are, you saw our VIV making regular rounds at sporting events, farmers markets and festivals– and perhaps even engaged with our volunteers in learning about great places to stay, eat and explore. 

After many years of excellent service, it was time for our VIV to “retire.” Fortunately, we were already interviewing her replacement months before, and thanks to Blue Compass RV and their sales associate Ron Gollaher, we secured a beautiful 18-foot RV this past summer. Now, the legacy of the mobile visitor center lives on through our Area Visitor Assistant, or AVA for short. 

AVA is already hitting the road to promote our region outside of our three Visitor Information Centers. Just this past month, she gave new residents a glimpse into our region’s local businesses at North Port’s Newcomers Day, surprised attendees at our inaugural Indicators & Insight Summit and made an appearance at the Tourist Development Council meeting. 

With all these engagements, AVA is showing off her new features too, having undergone a full branded makeover shortly after purchase. A network of local businesses helped us pull this off. Her interior buildout was completed by Our Van Quest and its owner, Jake Bachowski. Our agency of record, Miles Partnership, designed the exterior wrap, and Jason Getman and his team at Sign Zoo brought this creative to vision to print.  

If you catch her out and about, you’ll notice the vehicle’s exterior displays a comprehensive list of the neighborhoods and barrier islands that make up our destination, visuals of popular attractions and key branding elements such as Sarasota’s trademark, Florida’s Cultural Coast. You can also comfortably engage with a library of promotional collateral inside the RV or under an expansive awning, which will be a gift during the hot summer months, especially for our dedicated team of part-time staff and volunteers who ensure AVA charts our entire county. 

AVA was able to become the newest member of our team thanks to special one-time funding approved by Sarasota County Commissioners in 2023 to be used in 2024 from Tourist Development Tax, a 6% tax charged only to visitors on lodging stays under six months, tasked to be spent in ways that keep our tourism economy thriving.

Research tells us visitors who are informed about all there is to see and do here locally will not only spend more on activities, but also have a higher likelihood of becoming a repeat visitor – powerful catalysts for our local economy. Visitors from out of town are not the only ones who can benefit from AVA, too, as a visitor center on wheels encourages residents to be a tourist and pursue experiences right in their own hometown. 

You will find AVA at the same events and locations VIV frequented and then some. AVA is also open to requests, if you’d like her to attend your next gathering or happening. Email ava@visitsarasota.org and we’ll work with you on next steps. You can also track where she might attend next at visitsarasota.com/events-festivals. 

We’re thankful for the legacy our VIV left our community and excited to see the adventures AVA goes on in the coming years. If you see her on the road, make sure you give her a wave.

Erin Duggan, CDME, is president and CEO of Visit Sarasota County.  

Photo courtesy Visit Sarasota: Team members with AVA.