Can Ron DeSantis Run for Florida Governor Again?

Ron DeSantis cannot run for Florida governor again in 2026, but he can run again in 2030. Florida’s Constitution bars a governor who has served two consecutive terms from being elected to the immediately following term. It does not impose a lifetime ban, so once another governor has served a term in between, DeSantis becomes eligible to seek the office once more.¹

What the Constitution Actually Says

Article IV, Section 5 of the Florida Constitution prevents anyone who has served, or would have served absent resignation, more than six years across two consecutive terms from being elected to the “succeeding term.” That phrase is narrow on purpose. It blocks the very next election after two full terms. It does not block every election after that.¹

Once someone else has held the office for a term, a former two-term governor becomes eligible to run again. Florida’s approach is less restrictive than states with hard lifetime caps on gubernatorial service.

Why 2026 Is Off the Table

DeSantis was sworn in on January 8, 2019, after winning in 2018. He won re-election in 2022, and his second term ends on January 5, 2027. Two full four-year terms puts him well past the six-year threshold that triggers the consecutive-term restriction.¹

The next governor will be chosen in November 2026 and will serve from January 2027 through January 2031. That is the “succeeding term” the constitution keeps him out of.

When He Could Run Again

The earliest DeSantis could appear on a gubernatorial ballot again is the November 2030 election, which chooses the governor for the 2031 through 2035 term. By then he would no longer be seeking the term that immediately succeeds his own, so the restriction no longer applies.

Whether he actually does it is a political question, not a legal one. The constitution says only that he may.

What He Would Still Need to Qualify

Coming back into the race in 2030 would not exempt DeSantis from the standard requirements every candidate meets. The constitution requires the governor to be at least 30 years old, a registered Florida voter (an “elector”), and a resident of the state for the preceding seven years. Because Florida voter registration requires U.S. citizenship, that requirement rides along with the elector rule. A candidate who moved out of Florida in the interim would have to re-establish seven years of continuous residency before running.¹

Meeting those constitutional requirements is the starting point. To reach the ballot, a candidate must also qualify under Chapter 99 of the Florida Statutes, either by paying a qualifying fee equal to 6 percent of the office’s annual salary, or by collecting petition signatures from registered voters equal to at least 1 percent of the total statewide registered voters from the most recent general election. Signature-gathering can’t begin until a campaign treasurer and depository have been designated, and county supervisors of elections verify the petitions.² The governor’s salary is currently $141,400, which puts the qualifying fee at roughly $8,484.

Florida also requires the governor and lieutenant governor to run together in the general election. A gubernatorial candidate can run alone in the primary, but the nominee must then form a joint candidacy with a running mate so that voters cast a single ballot for the pair in November.¹