Who is Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, ex-GOP presidential candidate?

(NewsNation) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis dropped out of the race for the Republican presidential nomination earlier this year, but he is still being considered as a potential running mate for primary winner and former President Donald Trump.

Asked by Fox News host Laura Ingraham about a number of potential vice presidents, including DeSantis, Trump said “they are” all on his short list.

“Honestly, all of those people are good,” Trump said of the choices, which included his other former rivals, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. “They’re all good, they’re all solid.”

DeSantis himself told supporters in a call he would not want to be Trump’s vice president but also said that he hasn’t ruled out a 2028 presidential run, according to The New York Times.

Here’s what you need to know about Ron DeSantis and his political views:

• Ron DeSantis and his relationship with Donald Trump
• Abortion, defunding Planned Parenthood
• Critical race theory, “wokeness”
• Economy
• Immigration, migrants
• China, TikTok
• Israel
• Israel
• Guns
• Social Security
• Crime
• Fentanyl

Who is Ron DeSantis?

Before jumping into politics, the Florida native served in Iraq in support of the Navy SEAL mission in Fallujah, Ramadi, and later worked as a prosecutor in the Sunshine State.

Elected to Congress in 2012, DeSantis represented Florida’s 6th Congressional District in the House for about six years before making his gubernatorial run in 2018. He sprung onto the national stage as one of the most prominent Republican governors during the COVID-19 pandemic due to his disapproval of lockdowns and mask mandates. DeSantis has also made national headlines for his “war on woke” in Florida and formally launched his presidential campaign May 24, 2023.

DeSantis and his wife, Casey, have two daughters and a son.

DeSantis’ relationship with Trump

Trump was initially very supportive of DeSantis before the two became leading rivals for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, The Associated Press wrote. Trump tweeted his support for him right before Florida’s 2018 gubernatorial election, and DeSantis thanked the president by saying, “I think we’ll have a great partnership.” In one campaign ad, DeSantis could be seen sitting with his children, using one of Trump’s slogans, “Build the wall,” as his daughter played with cardboard brick blocks.

At one point in 2021, Trump even suggested DeSantis could be his running mate in the next election, telling Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo he is “a great guy.”

But as DeSantis’ national profile began to rise and his name was floated as a prospective GOP candidate for 2024 as well, that changed.

“Meatball Ron” and “Ron DeSanctimonious” were two of the names Trump started using for DeSantis, whom he now considered a rival. The former president said DeSantis was the only governor of Florida because of his support and that he “had nothing” before.

Asked to comment on Trump’s remarks, DeSantis said at one press conference that the attacks are part of the job.

“What you learn is all that’s just noise,” DeSantis said at the time. When it came to the nicknames Trump was using, DeSantis joked in an interview with TV host Piers Morgan that he doesn’t “know how to spell ‘DeSanctimonious.'”

“I kind of like it. It’s long, it’s got a lot of vowels. I mean, so we’ll go with that. That’s fine. You can call me whatever you want, just as long as you also call me a winner,” DeSantis said.

However, once DeSantis officially dropped out of the presidential race in January 2024, right on the eve of the New Hampshire primary, the relationship between the pair warmed. DeSantis endorsed Trump, which his campaign said was an honor. The New York Times quoted Trump as saying the nickname Ron DeSanctimonious was “officially retired” from then on out.

“It’s clear to me that a majority of Republican primary voters want to give Donald Trump another chance,” DeSantis said in his endorsement.

What are DeSantis’ political views?

As governor, DeSantis enacted policies, particularly in Florida’s 2023 legislative session, that dealt with current culture wars in the U.S. as part of what he calls his war on “woke.”

This includes signing, and then expanding, the Parental Rights in Education bill — known by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law, which bans instruction or classroom discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in Florida public schools. In addition, he signed a bill that blocks public colleges from using federal or state funding on diversity programs. He’s also been conservative on issues such as abortion and immigration.

Abortion bans, defunding Planned Parenthood

• Signed Florida’s six-week abortion ban into law in April 2023 following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2021. 
• In an interview with CBS News, said he is “absolutely not” in favor of criminalizing women who receive abortions after six weeks and instead insists the penalties for those breaking the Florida law “are for the physician.”
• Under DeSantis, Florida’s attorney general reportedly tried to reinstate part of a 2016 law that would block state funds from going to Planned Parenthood.

Critical Race Theory, gender identity and ‘wokeness’

• In Florida, he has pushed back against what he calls “woke” ideology in schools
• In a bid to protect “parental rights,” approved legislation forbidding instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation for K-12 students.
• Also signed a bill in May 2023 blocking public colleges from using federal or state funding on diversity programs.
• In June 2021, Florida’s Board of Education under DeSantis banned “critical race theory” from classrooms of public schools. The state education department has reportedly blocked more than 40% of math textbooks submitted for review, saying they violated the ban.
• DeSantis faced backlash in July 2023 for Florida education standards on teaching Black history that say middle school students should be taught that “slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for personal benefit.” Critics like Vice President Kamala Harris called the standards “revisionist history.”

Economy and cost of living

• DeSantis’ blueprint for economic prosperity touts his purported economic success in the Sunshine State. The governor’s office maintains the state “continues to outpace the nation in building a robust economy.”

Immigration, birthright citizenship and migrants

• Made headlines last year for sending planes carrying migrants to Martha’s Vineyard. His office said the flights were part of the state’s “relocation program” that sends migrants to “sanctuary destinations.”
• In May 2023, he signed Florida’s Senate Bill 1718, which, in part, imposes penalties for those employing undocumented immigrants and bans local governments from issuing ID cards to undocumented immigrants. 

TikTok, China, communism and Taiwan

• Believes China is “the No. 1 geopolitical threat this country faces,” per his comments in a Fox News interview.
• Signed legislation preventing Chinese entities and affiliates from buying farmland in Florida or land near military bases and critical infrastructure. He also blocked access to apps like TikTok on government and educational institution servers and devices in Florida.
• Cut state funding to four Florida schools his office said were found to have “direct ties to the Chinese Communist Party.”

Stance on Israel and Palestine

• Has expressed “unequivocal support” for Israel and supports military aid to Israel while also believing the U.S. should not accept refugees from Gaza.
• Faces a federal lawsuit from the ACLU and Palestine Legal, alleging Florida education officials violated the First Amendment by trying to disband the Students for Justice in Palestine groups at the University of Florida and the University of South Florida.
• Issued an executive order on Oct. 12 in Florida allowing the state to carry out evacuation operations and provide law enforcement support for Jewish communities in Florida. As part of Florida’s Israel Rescue Operation, nearly 700 Americans were flown back to Florida on four flights. Eighty-five pallets of hospital supplies were also sent to Israel.

War in Ukraine

• Has criticized the continued U.S. support for Ukraine amid the war and during the third GOP debate, said, “We need to bring this war to an end.” 
• In 2023, he called the war in Ukraine a “territorial dispute” but later walked these comments back.

Guns, concealed carry and mental health

• In April 2023, DeSantis signed legislation allowing Florida residents to carry concealed weapons without a government-issued permit. 
• Following the deadly shootings in Lewiston, Maine, DeSantis said he’s not certain if Florida’s red flag law is effective and that he would institutionalize more people with mental health issues.

Climate change and energy

• Has reportedly backed efforts to adapt to the impacts of climate change, but not to prevent it. 
• Rejects “the politicization of the weather” and believes the Biden administration has “a concerted effort to ramp up the fear” on topics like global warming and climate change.”

Social Security and Medicare

• Has said he does not support the privatization of Social Security and does not want to increase the retirement age, so long as life expectancy continues to decline.

Crime, death penalty and cash bail

• Wants to abolish the First Step Act and opposes eliminating cash bail.
• In Florida, the governor signed a bill that would impose the death penalty for offenders who commit sexual battery against children under the age of 12. 
• According to reports, DeSantis’ claim that Florida’s crime rate is at a 50-year low is based on incomplete data that is not verifiable.

Fentanyl crisis, opioid epidemic

• Enhanced penalties in Florida for the sale of a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of substance abuse treatment facilities and increased the mandatory minimum sentence for fentanyl trafficking.
• DeSantis announced a network of medical-assisted addiction care in Florida called Coordinated Opioid Recovery in 2022.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.