Florida officials prepare for special elections to replace Gaetz, Waltz

Florida officials will likely be holding two special elections to replace a pair of congressmen and Gov. Ron DeSantis will be appointing a successor to Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio.

President-elect Donald Trump selected Rubio for secretary of state, U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz for attorney general and U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz to be Trump's national security advisor.

Rubio and Gaetz will require approval by the Senate. Gaetz has already resigned his seat.

"Congratulations to the Floridians being appointed to key positions in the Trump administration: Senator Marco Rubio, Congressman Matt Gaetz, and Congressman Mike Waltz," DeSantis said in a post on X. "I've instructed Secretary of State Cord Byrd to formulate and announce a schedule for the upcoming special elections immediately."

Once that schedule is posted, DeSantis, according to state law, will issue an order.

Rubio's term ends in 2029, so DeSantis' appointee will have plenty of time to learn the ropes in the Senate, raise money and prepare for a possible reelection bid.

Trump's daughter-in-law and co-chair of the Republican National Committee, Lara Trump, has been touted as a potential replacement for Rubio. She told Sean Hannity on his Fox News TV program on Wednesday "If I am able to serve, I would love to serve the people of Florida."

She is supported by Florida U.S. Sen. Rick Scott. He posted to X, "RT (retweet) if you think @LaraLeaTrump should be Florida’s next Senator!"

Gaetz has also endorsed her appointment by DeSantis on X.

Both Gaetz and Waltz are from safe Republican districts, making a flip of either by Democrats highly unlikely. Gaetz represents the 1st Congressional District in northwest Florida, won reelection by a 66.04% vote according to unofficial results, and has been a staunch Trump ally.

Waltz, the first former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier elected to Congress, won the 6th Congressional District on Atlantic Coast with 66.54% of the vote.