Floridians wait to see which version of Ron DeSantis returns from the presidential campaign trail

Florida has seen two versions of Gov. Ron DeSantis. One earned praise from Democrats when he first took office in 2019. Then there's the conservative who attacked anyone who opposed him as he fought what he called the “woke mob.” Now that he's dropped out of the presidential race, Tallahassee insiders are wonder which version of DeSantis will return to Florida for the next two-plus years. The Legislature is already in the third week of its 60-day session and DeSantis hasn't weighed in much on its direction. Many expect a looser grip on the process than DeSantis has previously shown, at least while he recovers from this loss and considers another presidential run in 2028.