Gruters
GRUTERS PLANS TO BECOME FLORIDA CFO IN 2026 COULD BE DASHED BY DeSANTIS
WILL DeSANTIS AND TRUMP CLASH OVER FLORIDA CFO POSITION
Ingoglia
Florida State Senator and former Republican Party of Florida (RPOF) Chairman Joe Gruters plans to move on as Chief Financial Officer of Florida in 2026 could come crashing down, as Governor Ron DeSantis could picked his longtime political supporter Blaise Ingoglia to replace Petronis, who is stepping down to run for the U.S Congress.
Patronis
Patronis resigned his CFO position to run for Matt Gatz’s U.S Congressional District 1 position with President Elect Donald Trump’s endorsement.
Once Patronis resigned it became DeSantis’s decision to replace Patronis, which could put an end of Gruters well laid plans to continue sucking up to political trough for at least eight more years as CFO, being there is no love between Gruters and DeSantis.
For example, before the Gaetz resignation, Gruters plan was to serve out his Florida State Senate position, which was being term limited in 2026 and run for the term limited Petronis CFO position in 2026 in the Republican primary with Trump’s endorsement..
With DeSantis appointment, Ingoglia would serve out the two years left of Petronis term and run for re-election in 2026, which puts in jeopardy Gruters well laid plans to get elected to the CFO position in 2026.
Gruters, who is being term limited in 2026 had announced he would be a candidate to replace the term limited Patronis in 2026 and seemed secure in winning the position when President-elect Trump endorsed Gruters for the CFO position.
Gruters cat bird enviable position with Trump’s endorsement could all change with the political dominoes now falling with the resignation of Gaetz.
The decision by DeSantis to replace Petronis will also give an indication of the present relationship between the Florida Governor DeSantis and President-elect Trump.
If DeSantis appoints Ingoglia and decides to seek re-election in 2026 and Gruters decided to take on Ingoglia with Trump’s endorsement it will set up a proxy match between DeSantis and Trump.
According to sources Gruters was highly agitated when he learned DeSantis would appoint Ingoglia and called Trump. According those sources Trump reassured Gruters he had his endorsement for CFO.
DeSANTIS AND GRUTERS POLITICAL RIVALS
DeSantis and Gruters have long butted heads over fundraising, party structure, and even Gruters’ salary when Gruters was Chairman of the RPOF. DeSantis and Gruters clashed early in the governor’s term and the rivalry between the two men has been no secret.
“He (DeSantis) doesn’t like him (Gruters), but doesn’t want the blood on his hands to remove him as Chairman of the RPOF” said a DeSantis ally when Gruters was Chairman of the RPOF.
In October 2019, Gruters canceled the Statesman’s Dinner, the party’s biggest annual fundraiser. The party announced the move on Twitter even as DeSantis Chief of Staff Shane Strum asked Gruters to wait while the governor negotiated to secure Trump as the keynote speaker.
The problems continued between Gruters and DeSantis when Gruters was no longer Chairman of RPOF when DeSantis vetoed several of Gruters projects in the 2023-2024 fiscal year budget.
Gruters told Florida Politics last year. “It’s mean-spirited acts like this that are defining him here and across the country.”
DeSantis Press Secretary Jeremy Redfern told Florida's Voice it was Gruters politicizing the vetoes. “Senator Gruters turning conservative governance and fiscal responsibility into a political statement is absurd,” he told the conservative website. “Governor DeSantis approved more than $155 million for Sarasota County, including $25 million for New College of Florida.”
Gruters and DeSantis continued their confrontations when Gruters endorsed Amendment 3 in 2024, which was a proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would legalize recreational cannabis for adults 21 years and older.
In doing so, Gruters went up against DeSantis and the Republican Party of Florida, who formally come out in opposition to the proposal in May. Grutrs lost big time to DeSantis.
INGOGLIA A DeSANTIS LOYALIST
Ingoglia is a former Florida House member, who was elected to the Senate in 2022. He was also the Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida from 2015 to 2019, helping the party raise money and set out a strategy resulting in GOP victories in nearly every statewide election during that time. Ingoglia also carried several bills that were part of DeSantis’ legislative agenda.
Ingoglia took the helm of DeSantis’ state-level political committee, Friends of Ron DeSantis when DeSantis ran for President. The committee had over $90 million in cash on hand when Ingoglia became Chairman of DeSantis for President PAC.
OTHER POTENTIAL DeSANTIS/TRUMP MATCHUPS IN REPUBLICAN PRIMARIES FOR CONGRESSIONAL POSITIONS
The potential of Trump/DeSantis candidates running against each other in Florida is not limited to Gruters and Ingoglia, as there are reliable sources stating to the Sarasota Phoenix that there could be other Trump/DeSantis endorsed candidates running against each other in Republican primaries.
In Florida U.S Congressional District 1, the Trump endorsed Patronis has potential candidates running against him. One is Florida State Representative Joel Rudman, who wasn't intimidated by the Trump endorsement. Rudman on Monday submitted his resignation which will be effective Jan. 1, to House Speaker Daniel Perez, R-Miami.
Rudman posted on X, "And the good people here deserve a strong field of candidates and a robust Republican debate, not a coronation. Rudman stated, "We are about to find out what kind of swamp creature the RINO establishment plans to run against me.”
Former Florida Rep. Frank White told the News Journal he was also considering a run. White previously served in the Florida House of Representatives before an unsuccessful run for Florida attorney general in 2018.
Fighter pilot and decorated combat veteran Jeff Witt announced Monday he is entering the race to fill Gaetz’s seat representing Florida’s 1st congressional district.
Witt, 38, is a two-time graduate of Harvard University, a businessman, decorated Afghanistan War veteran, F-35 fighter pilot and instructor with more than a dozen years of military service. Witt flew 82 combat missions in Operation Enduring Freedom
Another candidate is John Frankman, who stated, “I was a CPT in the United States Army and a Special Forces Green Beret. Now, I’m running for Congress in Rep. Gaetz’s district to be an ally of the MAGA agenda and EXPOSE the harm that the radical Left has done to this great country and me.”
Florida State Representative and former pole dancer Michell Saltzman, who originally stated she would run to replace Gaetz, but decided to endorse Patronis.
Gruters with Fine
RANDY FINE TRUMP CHOICE FOR U.S CONGRSIONAL DISTRICT 6
In U.S Congressional District 6, Randy Fine is expected to announce to replace Michael Waltz, who is Trump’s nominated National Security Advisor. Waltz has not yet resigned his seat, however, and no election date has been set.
“Should he decide to enter this Race, Randy Fine has my Complete and Total Endorsement,” Trump wrote on Sunday. “RUN, RANDY, RUN!
FINE IS GRUTER’S “HEBREW HAMMER”
Fine has been reposting other endorsements for his potential congressional run ever since Trump’s post, including one from Gruters outright predicting that “The Hebrew Hammer is going to Congress!”
Fine does not live in District 6, which stretches from Mount Dora to Daytona Beach, but members of Congress don’t legally have to reside in their district. Fine, who made millions in the casino industry, lives about 75 miles south of Waltz’s district
There is little doubt a DeSantis supporter will be a Republican challenger to Fine, who actually lives in the district regardless of the Trump endorsement.
WHO DeSANTIS APPOINT TO REPLACE MARCO RUBIO
As Gruters nervously awaIts his political future and the U.S Congressional races play out., major attention will be on DeSantis in who he will appoint to replace Marco Rubio, who is resigning his U.S Senate position to become Trump’s Secretary of State.
Does DeSantis appoint Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump or will he appoint one politically close to DeSantis -- Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez, Florida’s Attorney General Ashley Moody, DeSantis Chief of Staff James Uthmeieris or former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner?
Choosing someone like Trump daughter-in-law Lara Trump, the Republican National Committee co-chair, would undoubtedly be a peace offering to Trump. But DeSantis defeated broadly popular voter amendments on abortion and pot — the latter of which had Trump's backing. As a result, DeSantis supporters are split over whether showing fealty to Trump is the only way for the governor to guarantee his future in the GOP.
Jon Susce
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