DeSantis, Ron (1978-…), became the governor of Florida in 2019. DeSantis, a Republican, had earlier served as a member of the United States House of Representatives. In 2023, DeSantis began a campaign to become the Republican Party’s nominee for president of the United States in the 2024 election. However, he dropped out of the race in January 2024 after a disappointing performance in the Iowa caucuses.
Ronald Dion DeSantis was born in Jacksonville, Florida, on Sept. 14, 1978. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Yale University in 2001 and a law degree from Harvard Law School in 2005. In 2004, DeSantis was commissioned an officer in the United States Navy. He completed Naval Justice School in 2005. DeSantis joined the Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps. The judge advocate general is the officer in charge of legal matters in the United States Army, Navy, or Air Force.
DeSantis served as a federal prosecutor in 2006. That same year, he was promoted to lieutenant. In 2007, DeSantis was assigned to a U.S. Navy SEAL team as a legal adviser and deployed to Iraq. He also served at the U.S. Guantánamo Bay detention facility in Cuba. He returned to the United States in April 2008 and began working as a military prosecutor. DeSantis was honorably discharged from the military in February 2010. He then served in the U.S. Navy Reserve.
In 2012, DeSantis was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. He was reelected in 2014 and 2016. DeSantis also ran in 2016 for the U.S. Senate. However, he dropped his Senate bid and was reelected to the House. While in the House, DeSantis served on the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Committee on Oversight and Reform.
In 2018, DeSantis defeated Democrat Andrew Gillum in the Florida governor’s race. DeSantis took office in January 2019. He was reelected governor in 2022. As governor, DeSantis gained attention for banning local governments from issuing mask or vaccine mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also drew attention for enacting measures that restrict the discussion of LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer) issues in public schools. DeSantis wrote a political memoir, The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival (2023).
