MIAMI – Without problem, the greatest political story of 2022 was the landslide victory of Governor Ron DeSantis.
He won by more than 1.5 million votes about his opponent Charlie Crist.
“We not only received the election,” DeSantis mentioned on Election Night, “we have rewritten the political map.”
He turned Miami Dade County red for the 1st time in 20 many years.
“Thank you, Miami Dade County.”
He even turned Palm Seaside County Republican.
“Thank you, Palm Beach County.”
And in performing so, he left no doubt that Florida is no for a longer period a swing point out or a purple state but a red point out.
And he also propelled himself into the countrywide discussion as a presidential contender in 2024.
Amid chants of two a lot more a long time – DeSantis could only smile as many others force his identify forward as the human being in the very best situation to obstacle Donald Trump for the Republican nomination.
“DeFuture” was the headline in the New York Publish.
Of training course, the former President unveiled his personal nickname for the Florida governor this yr: “Ron DeSanctimonious.”
But it wasn’t just DeSantis who won significant on election night time, Marco Rubio was re-elected to a 3rd time period in the United States Senate, as he handily defeated former Congresswoman Val Demings.
Republicans won in each and every corner of the point out and in the Legislature, Republicans now have supermajorities in both the point out House and Senate – indicating they have unchecked electric power to write legal guidelines in Tallahassee.
Regionally, we observed DeSantis’s electricity access into college boards – eliminating users of the Broward college board.
But it wasn’t all fantastic information for Republicans.
As the year drew to a close, former Congressman David Rivera was arrested, accused of conspiracy to commit income laundering, and failing to sign-up as a international agent soon after landing a $50 million deal symbolizing the despotic regime of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela.
The Rivera arrest introduced renewed focus on his connection to Rubio.
“The truth of the matter of the make any difference is that has nothing to do with me,” Rubio told CBS Miami in August just before the indictment was introduced.
But it is now distinct it did have some thing to do with Rubio.
As the indictment alleges, Rivera employed his romance with Rubio to land the agreement with the socialist governing administration and Rubio had two conferences with Rivera, like a single with an assortment of Venezuelan figures to examine bettering relations with Venezuela.
In other arrests, the sponsor of the so-named Really don’t Say Homosexual Invoice – point out Rep. Joe Harding from North Florida – was arrested by federal prosecutors for allegedly stealing $150,000 in pandemic relief cash proving at the time yet again that in Florida irony abounds.
This 12 months noticed the retirement of Congressman Ted Deutch, who still left congress to come to be the head of the American Jewish Committee.
Jared Moscowitz gained the race to swap him, whilst the relaxation of the South Florida delegation all sailed to re-election.
And as the New York Submit so deftly described: A Florida Guy built an announcement earlier this year – with President Donald Trump formally declaring he was running for President.
“I did not want this,” Trump declared at his official announcement in Mara a Lago.
“I had a really wonderful, uncomplicated lifestyle. It truly is. This is a little something I didn’t need. And a lot of you men and women you should not will need possibly. But we adore our country, and we have to take treatment of our place. We have to help you save our state.”
A couple days later on he referred to as for throwing out components of the constitution and obtaining himself installed as President.
