Could Matt Gaetz Get His House Seat Back?

Topline

Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., resigned from his post in the House last week after President-elect Donald Trump picked him for attorney general—but Gaetz withdrew as the nominee Thursday, leaving the right-wing firebrand’s future in doubt.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., departs after speaking during the Conservative Political Action Conference, … (+) CPAC 2024, at the National Harbor, in Oxon Hill, Md., Feb. 23, 2024.

Key Facts

Gaetz immediately almost resigned from Congress after the nod (despite being reelected earlier this month), just days before a report from the House Ethics Committee was reportedly set to be released on sexual misconduct and drug allegations against him.

Gaetz specifically stated in his resignation letter that he did “not intend to take the oath of office for the same office in the 119th Congress,” which Notre Dame law professor Derek T. Muller said on X Thursday is “enough to trigger a vacancy” for the spot Gaetz won in reelection under House precedent.

Because Gaetz resigned from Congress, his seat must be filled through a special election in Florida, according to the Constitution, meaning he cannot just retake his place in the House or be appointed into the seat.

After Gaetz stepped down, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he was working to announce a schedule for the special election immediately.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

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Crucial Quote

After Gaetz with Drew, Trump posted on Truth Social saying Gaetz “was doing very well but, at the same time, he didn’t want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has a lot of respect.” Trump continued: “Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!”

Could Matt Gaetz Run For His Own House Seat?

Gaetz—who won reelection in his Florida congressional district with 66.3% of the vote—could likely run for his own seat again in a special election. Jonathan Hanson, a professor at the University of Michigan’s Ford School of Public Policy, told Forbes he believes Gaetz would not have a problem running again as there is nothing in Florida law that would prohibit the person who vacated the seat from becoming a party’s nominee in a special election.

When Will An Election For Gaetz’s Seat Be Held?

Florida law does not explicitly lay out a timeline for filling a vacancy, though House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said following Gaetz’s resignation that there’s “about an eight-week period to select and fill a vacant seat” in Florida and he was hopeful Gaetz’s absence could be filled by Jan. 3, when the next Congress is sworn in.

Could Ron Desantis Appoint Matt Gaetz To The Senate?

“Senator Gaetz” was trending on X, formerly known as Twitter, within minutes of Gaetz announcing he was removing himself from consideration for attorney general. One Florida Senate seat will likely be open for appointment by DeSantis as Trump announced he is nominating Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of state. DeSantis could technically appoint Gaetz to that seat as he has no current role in Congress, but DeSantis said on Monday he has “already received strong interest from several possible candidates, and we continue to gather names of additional candidates and conduct preliminary vetting.” He said vetting would continue through the coming weeks and he expects a selection to be made in early January.

What Will Happen To The House Ethics Report?

It’s not clear. The House Ethics Committee deadlocked on Wednesday on whether to release the highly sought after report on its investigation into whether Gaetz engaged in sexual misconduct and other allegations. The report could be made public despite the committee not voting as two democratic representatives filed a “privileged” resolution to compel the report’s release. With Gaetz not in the running for attorney general, however, it’s unclear whether other legislation will continue to push for the contents of the report to become public. Hanson told Forbes if Gaetz is reelected to fill his own vacant seat, the push to release it could continue. “It’s not clear exactly what the Ethics Committee will do, but any return of Gaetz to Congress exposes him to the possibility that the case against him will proceed,” he said.

Key Background

Gaetz was recognized as one of Trump’s most controversial nominations to his Cabinet, with some Republican senators criticizing the pick. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said she doesn’t think Trump’s pick is “a serious nomination for the attorney general,” and Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, responded, “Are you sh****** me?” when asked about the nomination, according to HuffPost. Gaetz began serving in Congress in 2017 and made himself known as a die-hard Trump supporter, backing the then-president’s claims that the election in 2020 was stolen and invoking a Proud Boys slogan in support of Trump. Gaetz became the subject of a Department of Justice sexual misconduct investigation over allegations that he had sex a minor and violated sex trafficking laws by paying for sex, although he ultimately declined to prosecute him. The House Ethics Committee then probed Gaetz on the matter, and also investigated him for illicit drug use, accepting improper gifts and giving special privileges to friends. Gaetz has denied all allegations.

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