This week’s biggest Winners & Losers

Although conservative commentator Lauren Chen hails from Canada, she has plenty of sway in the Sunshine State. Her social media post criticizing a videotaped drag queen brunch in Miami’s Wynwood district was cited in a Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation complaint against the bar. “Hey DeSantis, you need to be on top of this,” the influencer said in her YouTube video – and the governor followed through. If only Chen had landed a hosting gig on “The View,” maybe the governor would have come on the show after all. 

Two years after she was first put up for the role, the Palm Beach County circuit judge is finally moving up to the Florida Supreme Court. While Renatha Francis has come under scrutiny lately, like being accused of threatening to have a state agency take someone’s kids away at a pool, this week marks a high point for the Federalist Society member. Her appointment will mean a majority of the state Supreme Court’s members are appointees of DeSantis, giving him greater influence over one of the state’s three branches of government.

Former Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren’s successor after he was ousted by the governor was quick to chart her own course, reversing Warren’s decision to not seek the death penalty against the suspect in a killing of an elementary school teacher. Warren previously did not pursue it because the victim’s family said they were not “hugely in favor” of the death penalty. The reversal was made without a conversation with the family, and showcases the stark change in prosecutorial philosophy from the new appointee. 

When you’re an incumbent seeking reelection, you can usually bank on the backing of elected officials and activists from your own party. Not so for state Rep. Daisy Morales, an Orlando lawmaker who has been abandoned by a sizable number of fellow Democrats and progressive organizations, who are backing Jennifer “Rita” Harris instead. It seems that siding with the GOP on big legislation has something to do with it, not to mention serious questions about her campaign fundraising. 

Broward County Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott has had a bumpy election season, and most voters haven’t even cast a ballot yet. His office has had issues with mail-in ballots going out late and polling places being changed to residents' frustrations. This week, another issue emerged with inaccurate translations on the Spanish versions of a school tax ballot question. While the Broward County School Board signed off on the translation, his office was responsible for making it, so the buck stops with them.

Donald Trump had just a few legal matters to attend to this week, from the FBI raid at Mar-a-Lago to his deposition with New York’s attorney general, in which he repeatedly pleaded the Fifth and refused to answer questions. Along with a criminal investigation into the Trump campaign in Georgia and Congress’ Jan. 6 hearings, the legal landscape is looking increasingly threatening for the Donald. Yet the former president has effectively rallied his supporters this week, with everyone from U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio to old frenemy Mike Pence bashing the Justice Department in his defense.