FL Senate Passes Bill That Would Allow DeSantis to Remain Governor While Running for President

Spencer Brown | April 26, 2023 7:45 PM

The Florida state Senate passed SB 7050 on Wednesday in a 28-12 party line vote, a piece of legislation addressing elections in the Sunshine State that included an amendment to change Florida's "resign-to-run" law to exempt state officials running for president or vice president from a requirement that they resign within 10 days after qualifying to run for federal office.

JUST IN: The Florida Senate passes the elections overhaul bill 28-12

It includes the change to Florida's resign-to-run law
— Lydia Nusbaum (@LydiaNusbaum) April 26, 2023

The legislation heads to the Florida state House next where Republicans also hold a majority and Speaker Paul Renner has expressed support for exempting the state's leaders from the resign-to-run requirement. If it passes the House as well, it would head to DeSantis' desk for signature.

DeSantis, of course, has still not officially announced a run for president, nor has he definitively said whether he wants to seek the presidency. Still, Florida state Senator Travis Hutson — who introduced the amendment to exempt state officials running for president or vice president from the resignation requirement — said this week while defending his amendment that DeSantis has "done a great job as our governor" and "will still be able to run the state without any issues" should he jump into the 2024 Republican presidential primary.

WATCH: Senator who proposed amendment exempting presidential candidates from resign-to-run defends DeSantis

Travis Hutson: "He's done a great job as our governor [...] He will still be able to run the state without any issues." pic.twitter.com/aRajpvnMOf
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) April 26, 2023

Polling still has Trump leading the 2024 GOP field, but DeSantis — even as just a potential primary opponent — currently stands as the 45th president's main opponent. Polling has also shown, as Guy explained here, that Trump is favored to win the primary but falls to Biden in a head-to-head matchup while DeSantis beats Biden in the hypothetical general election showdown.

If, in fact, DeSantis intends to run in 2024, then the seemingly inevitable success of a bill to exempt him from the state's resign-to-run requirement would move him closer to an announcement. Time will tell what decision he ultimately makes, but DeSantis' path to enter the 2024 race looks like it will soon be a bit more clear.