Florida Republican State Sen. Blaise Ingoglia is now the chair of the Friends of DeSantis state political committee, campaign records show.
Ingoglia replaces Tampa-based businessman Robert Watkins as chair of the committee as of May 8, the same day Watkins, who held the job since 2018, resigned the post, documents filed with the Florida Department of State said.
Ingoglia, a key state Republican who served as the party's chair from 2015-2019, won his state Senate seat in November 2022, after previously serving in the state's House of Representatives since 2014, according to Ballotpedia.
He was also 1 of the 99 Florida delegates pledged to former President Donald Trump at the 2016 Republican National Convention.
A native of Queens, New York, Ingoglia's career included founding America One Mortgage, Hartland Homes, and a marketing company, according to Ballotpedia.
Florida Politics reported that the committee has a war chest of around $85 million, which could be used for a 2024 DeSantis presidential bid, although he has not yet declared if he will run for office and would have to transfer the funds to a federal political action committee to use it in the race.
Open Secrets reported in January that DeSantis raised the most of any gubernatorial candidate in U.S. history, taking in more than $217 million for his reelection bid, almost 10 times more than his Democratic opponent Rep. Charlie Crist, who brought in just $31.6 million for the race.
DeSantis said during a press conference Monday in Tallahassee that he will decide on running "relatively soon."
Florida Politics said the move at the top of the committee could be part of a transition for DeSantis to enter the race which would pit him against Trump, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, and former Vice President Mike Pence, all of whom have formally announced their candidacies.
According to the report, this week's end of the state legislative session could likely be the jumping off point for DeSantis who said the session was one of the most productive in the state's history for getting his conservative agenda through the State House.
The news outlet reported that Ingoglia sponsored three of those bills signed by DeSantis this session, including a law prohibiting teachers unions from automatically deducting dues payments from members' paychecks, the law taking away Disney's Reedy Creek Improvement District's special treatment, and a law requiring eight instead of the unanimous 12 jurors to recommend a death sentence.
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