Rep. Matt Gaetz on Tuesday tossed cold water on a hot take that he is running for governor in 2026.
NBC News reported on speculation that the Fort Walton Beach Republican would surrender his Panhandle congressional seat to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis in the state’s next gubernatorial campaign.
“The idea that Rep. Matt Gaetz will run for Florida governor in 2026 has been the topic of several conversations in Tallahassee over the past few days, including during a reception Sunday night for the incoming speaker of the Florida House,” NBC reported on Monday.
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“Gaetz has long been considered on the shortlist of those who will try to seek the Republican nomination for governor, a field that is expected to be crowded because the incumbent, Ron DeSantis, will be facing term limits.”
NBC continued the speculation, citing an unnamed GOP lobbyist, who said, “There was a lot of talk about it at the reception last night, and Gaetz was telling people to basically expect him to be in.”
Another unidentified Republican “operative” allegedly told NBC, “He’s 100 percent in. I think Gaetz is an instant front-runner and from what I hear he’s already won the Trump primary.”
Gaetz himself told NBC that many had encouraged him “to consider running for governor one day.” But, he added, “we have an outstanding governor who will be in that position through 2026. My only political focus right now is Trump 2024.”
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On Tuesday, Gaetz completely dismissed the gist of NBC’s anonymously sourced reporting.
In a statement to The Gateway Pundit, Gaetz said, “The NBC story is overblown clickbait.”
“I ran into dozens of former colleagues from my days in the state Legislature. They encouraged me relentlessly to consider returning to Florida. I wasn’t focused on any of that talk, though. My sole mission right now is to kill the [GOP Rep. Byron] Donalds’ CR that funds Ukraine, [special counsel] Jack Smith, and a weaponized Biden government.”
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