Trump-Backed Florida Official Resigns to Run for US House Seat Vacated by Gaetz

Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis in April 2022. Courtesy of Jimmy Patronis

Florida’s chief financial officer is stepping down from his post to run in a special election to fill the U.S. House of Representatives seat recently vacated by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), following an endorsement from President-elect Donald Trump.

Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis told Gov. Ron DeSantis in a Nov. 25 resignation letter that he is resigning effective March 31, 2025.

Patronis, 52, said he’s stepping down to become a candidate for the special election for the seat representing Florida’s First Congressional District.

Gaetz was representing the district when, earlier in November, he resigned after being tapped by Trump to become U.S. attorney general.

Gaetz later withdrew from consideration for the top law enforcement position and has said he will not attempt to return to Congress.

The special election schedule set by Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd includes a deadline of Dec. 6 to qualify for a spot on the ballot. Primaries are slated for Jan. 28, 2025. The general election is set for April 1, 2025.

Patronis has been Florida’s chief financial officer since 2017. Before that, he represented Florida in the state House of Representatives.

Trump on Monday endorsed Patronis in the special election.

“As your next Congressman, Jimmy would work tirelessly alongside of me to Grow our Economy, Secure our Border, Stop Migrant Crime, Strengthen our Incredible Military/Vets, Restore American Energy DOMINANCE, and Defend our always under siege Second Amendment,” Trump wrote on his social media website, Truth Social.

Patronis responded: “Put me to work, Mr. President! I am here to serve.”

Republicans are expected to keep control of the seat, as Gaetz won the 2024 election with 66 percent of the vote.

After Trump’s endorsement, some of the candidates who had entered the race dropped out.

“Politics is an ever-changing chessboard,” state Republican Rep. Michelle Salzman, one of the candidates, said in a post on the social media platform X. “Our first priority as elected officials should be our constituents. If we put them first, we all win! Jimmy has been endorsed by the leader of our party and that should be enough for us to get behind him. Congratulations Jimmy Patronis.”

State Rep. Joel Rudman, another Republican, said he’s resigning from the state Legislature to vie with Patronis in the primary.

“I grew up in Brookhaven, MS vacationing in Northwest Florida every chance I got. I moved here as soon as I finished medical training. I love it here,” Rudman wrote on X. “And the good people here deserve a strong field of candidates and a robust Republican debate, not a coronation. I’m in.”