President-elect Donald Trump is pressuring Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to nominate his daughter-in-law Lara Trump to Sen. Marco Rubio's seat in the Sunshine State, Fox Digital reports. Understood.
President-elect Trump nominated Rubio for secretary of state last month, leaving the decision to name a successor to DeSantis. DeSantis said last month that he would likely name a candidate for the seat by early January.
Republican senators Rick Scott, Lindsey Graham, Katie Britt and Florida Representative Anna Paulina Luna support Rubio's bid to succeed her in the Senate. Speculation has increased in recent weeks that Lara Trump is likely to be chosen for the role. Lara Trump is married to the 45th president's son, Eric Trump, and is co-chairing the RNC during the 2024 presidential campaign.
A political associate of President-elect Trump said Tuesday that the former president and the president-elect are pushing DeSantis to name Lara Trump. The comments came as DeSantis and Trump were scheduled to attend the annual Army-Navy college football game this weekend, Fox Digital previously reported.
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Lara Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord National Resort Hotel and Convention Center on February 22, 2024 in National Harbor, Maryland. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
If Rubio is confirmed as the United States' next secretary of state, his successor will serve in the Senate for two years until another Senate election is held in 2026.
Lara Trump announces resignation as RNC co-chair amid talks to potentially run for Florida Senate seat
President-elect Donald Trump (left) and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. (Joe Radle/Getty Images)
Amid speculation about a potential replacement for Rubio, Lara Trump announced this week that she would step down from her role as co-chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) after serving throughout the presidential campaign. In a social media post, she explained that she had accomplished three goals she had sought as Republican co-chair and would “officially resign from the RNC at its next meeting.”
Lara Trump 'would definitely consider' filling Rubio's Senate seat if asked by DeSantis
Lara Trump has publicly spoken positively about the possibility of filling the Florida Senate seat, saying she would “100% consider” taking the job if offered by DeSantis.
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Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference at Rosen Shingle Creek on February 25, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. (Joe Radle/Getty Images)
“It's something I would seriously consider,” she told The Associated Press. “If I were to be completely transparent, I don't know exactly what it would be like. And if that were to be real for me, I would certainly I'd like to get the information. But yeah, I'll consider it 100%.'' ”
She also told Fox News' Sean Hannity last month that she “want to serve the people of Florida” and that she would “definitely consider” filling the seat if asked.
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This isn't the first time Lara Trump has been at the center of speculation in the Senate. After the 2020 presidential election, rumors spread throughout Washington, D.C. that President Trump's daughter-in-law was considering a run for U.S. Senate in her home state of North Carolina. She ultimately decided not to run and supported the current senator. Ted Budd.
Fox News Digital's Christina Shaw and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
