DeSantis Names New Deputy Who Could Be Political Heir 

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has named a new deputy and potential political heir with the appointment of Jay Collins as lieutenant governor of Florida. Collins assumed office on Tuesday and replaced Jeanette Nuñez, who had resigned as lieutenant governor to head Florida International University. 

Collins is seen by some political insiders as a potential successor to DeSantis, who is prevented by term limits from running for a consecutive third term as governor. His term will expire in January 2027. The incumbent Florida governor has declined to endorse Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., in his bid to be the Republican gubernatorial nominee in the 2026 general election. President Donald Trump has endorsed Donalds. DeSantis has also praised his wife, Casey DeSantis, as someone capable of succeeding him. 

“She [Casey DeSantis] would do better than me. Like, there’s no question about that,” the Florida governor said in February. The first lady of Florida has thus far not entered the race. 

A former Green Beret medic, Collins served in the U.S. Army for more than 20 years. In that time he earned the Purple Heart, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, and Combat Infantry Badge, among other distinctions. While serving in Afghanistan, Collins sustained injuries that resulted in him having to have one of his legs amputated. 

Collins served in the Florida State Senate from November 2022 until becoming lieutenant governor. There, Collins notably sponsored legislation that became law, which enabled 14- to 17-year-olds in Florida to work more than eight hours a day on school nights without mandated breaks. 

DeSantis’ time as Florida governor has seen massive gains for the GOP in electoral politics in the state. After getting elected as governor in 2018 by less than 33,000 votes, DeSantis trounced former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist in 2022, garnering more than 1.5 million votes than his Democrat opponent. The Florida governor’s policies, including reopening the state during the COVID-19 period, have contributed in part to an influx of Republican voters to the state. The governor has also managed to win over many Latinos, earning 58% of their vote in 2022, in a state that is increasingly Hispanic. 

On the governing side, DeSantis has implemented numerous conservative reforms in higher education including the creation of the Hamilton School of Classical and Civic Education at the University of Florida and the restructuring of the New College of Florida through the appointment of conservatives like Chris Rufo and Mark Bauerlein to its board of trustees.

In recent months, DeSantis has also supported the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration, showing the president around an illegal immigration detention facility in Florida known as Alligator Alcatraz. Such moves may portend another presidential run by the Florida governor in 2028.