Florida’s Chief Financial Officer, Jimmy Patronis, resigned from his position on Monday, November 25th, and announced his candidacy for the seat in the first congressional district currently held by former Congressman Matt Gaetz.
Patronis expressed his gratitude for the nearly eight years he served as Florida’s CFO, stating, “It has been an honor to serve as the chief financial officer of Florida.”
His resignation and subsequent announcement to run for Congress came shortly after former President Trump publicly urged him to participate in the special election for the House seat.
Following Trump’s endorsement, several candidates who had previously announced their candidacy for the seat swiftly withdrew from the race to throw their support behind Patronis. However, State Representative Joel Rudman also resigned from his seat on Monday, announcing his intention to run in the primary election.
The Republican primary for this seat is scheduled for January 28th, with the special election set to take place on April 1st. It is worth noting that this congressional district is one of the most conservative in Florida. Earlier this month, Matt Gaetz was re-elected with a 66% vote share.