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Nov. 8 (UPI) -- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis handily won re-election Tuesday, defeating former Republican governor turned Democrat Charlie Crist in a crucial test for a national conservative standard bearer. DeSantis breezed past Crist by an impressive margin in securing a second term, CNN, the New York Times and NBC News reported.
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The impressive victory could well become a springboard to a 2024 White House bid for the Florida conservative, perhaps setting him up for a battle with former President Donald Trump for the GOP nomination.
DeSantis, 44, has been a strong supporter of Trump, and is the founder of the House Freedom Caucus, made up of conservative Republican members of the House of Representatives. In a debate with Crist, he did not commit to serving a full term amid the speculation of his presidential ambitions.
The attorney and U.S. Navy officer signed bill to outlaw abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy without exceptions for rape or incest.
DeSantis has also championed and passed the so-called Don't Say Gay Law. The Parental Rights in Education Act prohibits "classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity." It also requires "prohibiting school district personnel from discouraging or prohibiting parental notification and involvement in critical decisions affecting a student's mental, emotional, or physical well-being."
Opponents argue it interferes with the rights of students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer, to speak out about who they are, and potentially harms them by outing them as LGBTQ to parents under the notification provision.
It also allows parents to sue school districts to award damages for violations.
DeSantis has been a staunch opponent of illegal migration, arguing it puts an unfair burden on Southern border states. He made national headlines after his administration chartered planes and dropped around 50 Colombian and Venezuelan migrants in Martha's Vineyard, Mass. in September.
The move is part of a broader campaign by Republican politicians to transport large numbers of migrants to liberal states and cities.
His open-for-business attitude during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic fueled his popularity with conservatives. He opposed facemask mandates in schools throughout. Florida had one of the highest rates of COVID-19 mortality in the country.
"People know that Florida is a free state," DeSantis said earlier this year. "They're not gonna have you shut down. They're not gonna have restrictions."
