Casey DeSantis

American television news host and First Lady of Florida

Jill Casey DeSantis (née Black, born June 26, 1980) is a former American television journalist and news show host and the current first lady of Florida as the wife of Governor Ron DeSantis.[2][3]

Casey DeSantis
Official portrait, September 2019
First Lady of Florida
Current
Assumed role
January 8, 2019
GovernorRon DeSantis
Preceded byAnn Scott
Personal details
Born
Jill Casey Black[1]

(1980-06-26) June 26, 1980 (age 44)
Troy, Ohio, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
(m. 2009)
Children3
ResidenceFlorida Governor's Mansion
EducationCollege of Charleston
(BS)

Early life

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Casey DeSantis was born Jill Casey Black was born on June 26, 1980 in Troy, Ohio. DeSantis graduated from the College of Charleston receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in economics and minored in French.[4]

News anchor career

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Early in DeSantis's career, she hosted Golf Channel programs as local newscaster and anchor at an independent station in Jacksonville, Florida, and held several positions, including general assignment reporter, morning anchor, and police reporter. DeSantis also held reports for CNN.[4]

First Lady of Florida

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DeSantis with her husband, Governor Ron DeSantis during an interview in January 2019.
 
DeSantis with her husband Govenor Ron DeSantis, President Donald Trump, and First Lady Melania Trump in June 2019.

DeSantis assumed the role and duties as the first lady of Florida on succeeding Ann Scott, when her husband inaugurated as the 46th governor of Florida. At age of 38, DeSantis is the youngest woman to assume the role as the first lady of the state.

As first lady, she launched four major initiatives during her husband's term in office such as, Hope Florida, Florida Cancer Connect, Resiliency Florida, Hope Healing for Florida and The Facts. Your Future.[5]

DeSantis was an advisor to her husband's 2024 presidential campaign.[6] The New York Times has noted her role in advising her husband on media strategy and policy matters.[6] In December 2023, she was criticized for telling Republicans nationwide to take part in the Iowa caucus.[7][8]

After receiving the Stateswoman of the Year award, people began to think she would run for governor in the 2026 gubernatorial election.[9][10] However, spokesperson for the DeSantis campaign said she was not interested in running.[11]

Personal life

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Casey Black and Ron DeSantis had met each other at Naval Station Mayport when he was a naval officer on a golf course. They married in September 2009, at Disneyworld[12] and have three children together named Mason, Madison, and Mamie DeSantis.[13]

On October 4, 2021, her husband announced that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer.[14] On March 3, 2022, she announced that she was cancer-free.[15]

References

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  1. "Jill Casey Desantis's Florida Voter Registration". VoterRecords.com.
  2. "First Lady Casey DeSantis". Retrieved 2022-10-19.
  3. "MEET CASEY". Ron DeSantis for Governor. Archived from the original on 2022-10-19. Retrieved 2022-10-19.
  4. 4.0 4.1 "First Lady Casey DeSantis". Retrieved 2022-10-19.
  5. "Casey DeSantis announces a statewide cancer initiative for patients and survivors". WUSF Public Media. 2022-08-05. Retrieved 2022-10-19.
  6. 6.0 6.1 Glueck, Katie (2023-05-24). "Florida's First Lady, and Second in Command". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-05-28.
  7. Luscombe, Richard (9 December 2023). "Casey DeSantis encourages Republicans nationwide to vote in Iowa caucus". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  8. Alafriz, Olivia (9 December 2023). "Trump hits Casey DeSantis over call for out-of-state backers to be "part of the caucus" in Iowa". Politico. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  9. Nicol, Ryan (2023-07-09). "Winner and Loser of the Week in Florida politics — Week of 7.2.23". Florida Politics. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
  10. "While DeSantis struggles with his run for president, who's next for Florida governor?". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved 2023-07-28.
  11. Palmeri, Tara (2023-08-18). "Imagining "Jillary" DeSantis". Puck. Retrieved 2023-09-19. A DeSantis campaign spokesperson disputed that Casey has any interest whatsoever in her own political career, calling the allegation "categorically false." But the whispers have been unavoidable since May, when Casey was named Stateswoman of the Year by the Sarasota G.O.P.
  12. "MEET THE FAMILY". Ron DeSantis for Governor. Archived from the original on 2022-10-25. Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  13. "First Lady Casey DeSantis". Retrieved 2022-10-19.
  14. Wilson, Kirby; Mower, Lawrence (October 4, 2021). "Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis diagnosed with breast cancer". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on November 8, 2022. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  15. DeSantis, Ron [@GovRonDeSantis] (March 3, 2022). "Excited to share this update about First Lady @FLCaseyDeSantis' health" (Tweet). Archived from the original on March 4, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022 – via Twitter.

Other websites

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