DeSantis Appoints Florida AG Ashley Moody, an Election Denier, to Vacant Senate Seat

By Courtney Cohn

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody (R) speaks at the Republican Party of Florida Freedom Summit Nov. 4, 2023, in Kissimmee, Fla. (Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP)

Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) appointed Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody (R), an election denier, to fill the Senate seat vacated by Marco Rubio (R) — who is set to join President-elect Donald Trump’s administration as secretary of state.

In a post on X, DeSantis praised Moody’s record, claiming that she “led state efforts to bolster election security” and “defended President Trump from weaponized lawfare.”

Moody was elected as Florida’s attorney general in 2018, and around two years later, she signed on to a brief filed in the U.S. Supreme Court in support of a Texas case seeking to overturn the 2020 election. The petition, which alleged there was widespread fraud in mail-in voting, was rejected by the nation’s highest court.

This was the first of numerous times she threatened voting rights and democracy for Floridians and voters across the country. 

Leading up to the 2022 election, Moody opposed Amendment 4, a ballot initiative to reenfranchise individuals with felony convictions after the completion of their sentence, which ultimately passed.

“She worked for over a year to silence the voices of Floridians who wanted Amendment 4 on the ballot, weaponizing state law and the Florida Constitution to score the political points that got her this appointment,” Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said in a statement this morning.

Also, Moody signed on to briefs appealing court decisions rejecting state voter suppression laws, including ones defending Senate Bill 90 and Senate Bill 7050. She was also on a brief defending a congressional map drawn by DeSantis that plaintiffs argued discriminates against Black voters.

“Ashley Moody has been Ron’s personal lapdog from day one,” Fried said. “Despite her role as an independent constitutional officer, she has insisted on calling him ‘boss’ and defended his extreme agenda at every turn. Her reward is a seat in the United States Senate, paid for by her loyalty to Ron and her failure to serve Floridians.”

Moody will serve in the Republican-controlled Senate until the 2026 midterm election when the seat will be back on the ballot. DeSantis will have to appoint someone to replace Moody as the state’s attorney general.