Although Ron DeSantis did win by a lot in the 2022 midterm elections, that just doesn’t mean he’ll be seeing political smooth-sailing for the rest of his present term, any more than the strong Democratic lean of California meant Governor Gavin Newsom avoided a recall election in which residents voted on potentially booting him from office.
DeSantis, who is now in his second term and remains a subject of what seems like endless speculation he might run for the presidency, has expressed support for allowing Floridians to openly carry firearms in general without a permit — but legislative changes to actually make that happen weren’t included in key legislation on guns that’s been introduced in the Florida legislature for the newest session. In supporting open carry, DeSantis has found opposition in Florida sheriffs, including Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri — a group that in general obviously isn’t known as some hotbed of far-left ideology. Gualtieri leads the Legislative Committee at the Florida Sheriffs Association and pointed to contacts with state Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, a Republican state Senator.
Indicating he and the “bulk” of sheriffs he knows oppose open carry like DeSantis wants, Gualtieri explained to the Tampa Bay Times: “We’ve conveyed that to the president and I applaud her for standing firm.” He also noted that some open carry is already allowed, like in circumstances connected to hunting and fishing. Those permissions already strain the local communities, both in terms of perceived and actual dangers and the resources required from sheriffs’ departments to respond to continuing calls about passersby with large firearms.
Elsewhere, Passidomo herself also pointed to the opposition from sheriffs. “The sheriffs who I deeply respect, who are in the business, who understand the issues, do not support open carry in the state of Florida, they support permitless carry,” she explained. Although it doesn’t seem she participated in originally helming the legislation that was already introduced and will let some Floridians covertly carry guns without a permit, she could have a role in some hypothetical alteration to the legislative agenda. Orange County Sheriff John Mina, whose jurisdiction includes the prominent city of Orlando, also recently expressed opposition to a proposal to lower the minimum age for buying certain long guns back to 18 from 21. The age was raised after the mass shooting in Parkland, Florida, at a high school — a change put into law, perhaps surprisingly, by Republicans including Rick Scott, who was serving as governor.
