Matt Gaetz Floats a Run for Florida Governor in 2026

The former congressman was the focus of a House Ethics panel report accusing him of “regularly” paying for sex and using drugs, which helped doom his short-lived nomination for attorney general.

Former Representative Matt Gaetz, who withdrew as President-elect Donald J. Trump’s nominee for attorney general ahead of the release of a House Ethics panel report that accused him of “regularly” paying for sex and using drugs, said he was “starting to think about running for governor” next year in Florida.

The contest for the open seat in Mr. Trump’s adopted home state is expected to draw significant interest, as Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was elected in 2018 and 2022, is term-limited.

“I have a compelling vision for the state,” Mr. Gaetz, a far-right provocateur, told The Tampa Bay Times in a report published on Tuesday.

In a telephone interview with The New York Times on Wednesday, Mr. Gaetz said that he had spoken to Mr. Trump about a possible bid for governor and that he “knows that I have that ambition.” He declined to elaborate on their conversation, other than to say that the president-elect had shared advice with him and that he expected several of Mr. Trump’s other allies would contend for the job.

Read more at: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/08/us/politics/matt-gaetz-florida-governor.html