Casey DeSantis, the first lady of Florida, was named the most favorable potential candidate to run as the next gubernatorial Republican nominee, beating out former U.S. representative Matt Gaetz, Representative Byron Donalds and Senator Ashley Moody.
Approximately 30 percent of Floridians said they had a favorable view of Casey, with a whopping 57 percent of registered Republicans favoring her, according to a new poll conducted by the University of North Florida’s Public Opinion Research Lab.
Though not a politician herself, Casey has become a recognizable Floridian while standing beside her husband, Governor Ron DeSantis, through his two successful gubernatorial elections and one failed presidential campaign.
Casey’s favorability is 12 percentage points higher than Gaetz’s, despite the former rep being a notable ally of President Donald Trump. Gaetz was briefly named the Attorney General nominee by Trump but bowed out of the nomination process after a House Ethics Committee investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct came to light.
Dr. Michael Binder, the faculty director of the Public Opinion Research Lab, attributed some of Casey’s favorability to her “association as Florida’s first lady.”
In a similar poll from 2023, Casey also came out on top for the highest favorability among potential Republican primary candidates with 22 percent support, Binder said.
Casey’s positive public image has reportedly interested Republican donors in Florida who met with Casey as recently as early February to discuss her potential political future, NBC News reported.
Ron DeSantis cannot run for governor again because he is subjected to term limits.
However, Binder emphasized that the public favorability poll may change as the Republican primary draws closer because most respondents said they had never heard of other candidates such as Donalds, another Trump ally, Moody, who was recently appointed to replace Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s seat in the U.S. Senate.
By far, Casey and Gaetz had the highest percentage of recognition compared to the other candidates.
“Most of these potential candidates suffer from a lack of recognition-some suffering more than others. That said, I expect we’ll see a few of them become household names by the time the August 2026 primary rolls around,” Dr. Binder wrote in the press release.
Should Casey enter the gubernatorial race, it would likely become a turf war between team DeSantis and team Trump.
Though they were once close allies, Ron DeSantis and Trump’s relationship dissolved after the two got into a public battle before the Republican presidential primaries. Ron DeSantis was largely seen as a viable contender to replace Trump until the president overshadowed him. After dropping out of the presidential race, DeSantis endorsed Trump for president.
