TALLAHASSEE, FL. Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis is approaching the end of his second and final consecutive term and is expected to leave office on January 12, 2027.
Florida voters will elect the state’s next governor in the November 3, 2026, general election:
Byron Donalds—Republican nominee and U.S.representative
David Jolly—Democratic nominee and former U.S.representative
The winner is scheduled to take office in January 2027 for a four-year term.
DeSantis’s departure will mark the end of eight years as Florida’s governor and the beginning of a new chapter in the state’s political leadership.
DeSantis and his wife Casey, a former television host, have three children, Madison, Mason, and Mamie.
DeSantis was born in Jacksonville, Florida, and grew up in Orlando and Dunedin, Florida.
He graduated from Dunedin High School and then attended Yale University, where he graduated magna cum laude in 2001. After teaching history for a year, he entered Harvard Law School, where he earned his Juris Doctor degree with cum laude honors in 2005.
DeSantis served in the United States Navy from 2004 to 2010. He was an officer with the Joint Attorney Corps (JAG), advising a Navy SEAL commander in Iraq and working with detainees at Guantanamo Bay. His military decorations include the Bronze Star for Meritorious Service and the Iraq Campaign Medal.
DeSantis worked as a federal prosecutor before being elected in 2012 to the U.S. House of Representatives to represent Florida’s 6th congressional district, a position he held until he ran for governor in 2018. In 2015, DeSantis announced he would run for the Senate seat held by Marco Rubio (Republican). When Rubio announced he would seek reelection to the Senate, DeSantis ran for reelection to the House of Representatives.
DeSantis, first took office on January 8, 2019, and won reelection in 2022. Florida’s consecutive-term limits prevent him from running for a third consecutive term in the 2026 gubernatorial election.
In the 2018 general election, DeSantis won the Republican primary for governor of Florida, DeSantis, first took office on January 8, 2019, defeating then-Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam (Republican) and six other candidates. Donald Trump (Republican) endorsed DeSantis in the primary.
DeSantis was re-elected in 2022. He is ineligible for reelection due to Florida’s consecutive-term limits.
Governor DeSantis drew national media attention for his handling of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, lifting restrictions to reduce virus transmission sooner than other governors, stating that he would not impose restrictions on freedom for the sake of the economy.
DeSantis even ran for president of the United States in 2024. He declared, “In Florida, we proved it could be done. We chose facts over fear, education over indoctrination, law and order over riots and disorder. We stood firm when freedom was on the line.” DeSantis withdrew on January 21, 2024, after having obtained the third largest number of delegates, behind Trump and former US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley (Republican).
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