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Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Who is Blaise Ingoglia? DeSantis picks new Florida CFO
After months without anyone in the position, Gov. Ron DeSantis has finally named his new Chief Financial Officer: close ally, businessman and professional poker player Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill. "Yes, he's got a great financial record, which is important," DeSantis said at a press conference announcing the appointment. "But I looked even broader than that because I wanted to say who's running toward these fights and who's running and hiding. And on every single time we've had a flash point in Florida, Blaise is running into battle to stand up for people like you." Ingoglia, 54, owns homebuilding company Hartland Homes and listed his net worth at $28.3 million on his most recent financial disclosure. He served as chair of the Republican Party of Florida in 2015–19 and later helped run a DeSantis political committee when the governor ran for the GOP nomination for president in 2024. DeSantis also mentioned Ingoglia's GovernmentGoneWild social media, in which he attacked governmental waste. While the choice wasn't unexpected, it may reignite the fading feud between DeSantis and President Donald Trump. Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, last year announced his intent to run for the open seat in 2026 and Trump has already enthusiastically endorsed him. The post has been vacant since April 1 when former CFO Jimmy Patronis left to replace former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz as Northwest Florida's member of Congress. Susan Miller, who was chief of staff under Patronis, has been in charge of the Department of Financial Services since then but was never named CFO, even on an interim basis. The last press release from the department was in May, according to its website. Such a lengthy vacancy in a cabinet spot is unusual — the CFO is third in the line of succession for governor, after the lieutenant governor and attorney general — but DeSantis said he would fill the spot after the 2025 Florida Legislative Session was over and then it went into overtime due to state budget squabbles. DeSantis has yet to replace former Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez, who left the role in February to become president of Florida International University, one of several DeSantis allies in leadership positions in Florida's higher education. Who is Sen. Blaise Ingoglia? State Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill, is a Queens, New York, native who moved to Florida in 1996 to start a mortgage company and homebuilding company. He became politically active, his bio says, when property taxes skyrocketed, founding "Government Gone Wild" and producing seminars and videos over governmental wastefulness. The 54-year-old was elected chair of the Hernando County Republican Executive Committee in 2009, and then was elected vice-chair of the Republican Party of Florida in 2011. In 2014, he was elected to the Florida House of Representatives and was later chosen chair of the Republican Party of Florida. He was reelected as state chair in 2017. Ingoglia ran for the Florida Senate in 2022 with DeSantis' endorsement and won. As a close ally of DeSantis, described as the governor's "conservative pitbull in the Florida Senate,' Ingoglia has criticized legislative leaders during a rift with the governor over immigration laws. He's sponsored bills in line with DeSantis' agenda, including lowering property taxes and imposing term limits on local officials. Ingoglia headed Friends of Ron DeSantis, a state-level political committee that was criticized for transferring more than $80 million in funds raised to support DeSantis's previous two gubernatorial election campaigns to Never Back Down Inc., a political action committee that supported his unsuccessful presidential campaign. The senator was named the PAC's chief on May 8, 2023, three days after DeSantis took steps to distance himself from it. On May 24, DeSantis announced his presidential bid. On May 30, Ingoglia shut the PAC down completely, and the next day the Empower Parents PAC transferred $82.5 million the Never Back Down, Inc. PAC. Ingoglia has been a campaign spokesperson for both Trump and DeSantis. He's also been a minor YouTube celebrity with his Government Gone Wild wealth seminar videos, where until 2019 he posted videos such as "The Illegal Immigration Video Democrats DON'T Want You to See" and "Welcome to the United 'Waste' of America." Blaise Ingoglia is an internationally ranked poker player Since starting to play poker professionally, Ingoglia has posted earnings of $469,668, according to That includes winnings of $261,901 at an event in Atlantic City in 2006. His last game on record was more than a year ago, but Ingoglia has played off and on since February 2005. That's when he won more than $8,000 in the 2005 Borgata Poker Open. How do you pronounce Blaise Ingoglia? "Blaze In-GO-lee-ah." Ingoglia is an Italian surname that means "in the family of Goglia." In Italian names, "gl" is pronounced something like the sound in the middle of "million." What does Florida's Chief Financial Officer do? The Department of Financial Services is a powerful one, in charge of paying state vendors and overseeing insurance, financial regulators and fire investigations. It was created in 2002 after the Florida Cabinet was overhauled in 1998 by combining the former offices of comptroller, treasurer, insurance commissioner, and fire marshal. "My department serves consumers and taxpayers through its work in 13 different divisions and additional initiatives I set forth," Patronis once wrote for the DFS website. "A world of information and assistance is provided by the department on issues ranging from insurance education and assistance, fire prevention and safety, and even unclaimed cash and property."I have also established additional priorities to assist Floridians including fighting fraud, consumer protection and fiscal transparency." The DFS is made of the following divisions, each one with a direct impact on Floridians: Accounting and Auditing Consumer Services Criminal Investigations Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services Insurance Agent and Agency Services Office of Financial Regulation Office of Insurance Regulation Rehabilitation and Liquidation Risk Management Treasury State Fire Marshal Unclaimed Property Workers' Compensation Previously published material was used in this report. (This story was updated to add new information.) This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Blaise Ingoglia tapped to be new Florida CFO after months of vacancy Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Gov. DeSantis appoints Sen. Blaise Ingoglia as Florida's new Chief Financial Officer
The Brief Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed the Sunshine State's new Chief Financial Officer. Republican Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, 54, will fill the vacancy left by former CFO Jimmy Patronis in April. Ingoglia previously served in the House and as Chair of the Republican Party of Florida. TAMPA, Fla. - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis hosted a press conference on Wednesday in Tampa, where he announced the appointment of the Sunshine State's new Chief Financial Officer. Republican Blaise Ingoglia, 54, will fill the vacancy. Ingoglia previously served in the House and as Chair of the Republican Party of Florida (RPOF). Florida's new CFO What we know DeSantis has appointed Blaise Ingoglia as the state's next CFO. The position was left open earlier this year by former CFO Jimmy Patronis when he ran for Congress. The CFO is third in the line of succession for governor after the lieutenant governor and attorney general. DeSantis called Ingoglia "the most conservative senator in the state" and said he has a "very clear record as a warrior for the voters." CLICK TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX LOCAL APP Ingoglia has represented District 11 in the Florida Senate since 2022. He previously served in the Florida House of Representatives for District 35 from 2014 to 2022. Ingoglia was Chairman of Hernando GOP prior to serving as the RPOF Chairman from 2015 to 2019. The choice may spark some controversy between DeSantis and President Donald Trump, as the president previously endorsed Sen. Joe Gruters after he announced his intent last year to run for the open seat in 2026. DeSantis said selecting Gruters would have been "betraying the voters that elected him to lead the state in a conservative direction." 'Conservative pitbull' What they're saying Ingoglia said he will "work night and day" to make sure he's a good public servant and called himself a "conservative pitbull when it comes to spending" and a "proactive fiscal watchdog." Ingoglia said he wants to offer real property relief to people in Florida and wants to stop wasteful spending at the local level. SIGN-UP FOR FOX 35'S BREAKING NEWS, DAILY NEWS NEWSLETTERS "I want to congratulate Blaise Ingoglia on his appointment to serve the people of Florida," Evan Power, chairman of the Republican Party of Florida (RPOF), said. "As a former Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, Blaise led our party to historic victories and laid a strong foundation for the political success we enjoy today. His proven leadership and steadfast commitment to conservative principles will continue to deliver a lasting impact on our great state." The Source This story was written based on information shared by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a news release and press conference on July 16, 2025.
Vancouver Sun
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Vancouver Sun
U.S. immigration detainees start to arrive at Florida's 'Alligator Alcatraz' in the Everglades
In a matter of days, an isolated training airport in the Everglades where endangered Florida panthers roam became a sprawling immigration detention center christened 'Alligator Alcatraz,' modelled after the state's frequent responses to hurricanes and built in part by companies whose owners have donated generously to Republicans. It's been less than two weeks since the state seized the property from Miami-Dade County. Massive tents have been erected and a steady stream of trucks carrying portable toilets, asphalt and construction materials have been driving through the site inside the Big Cypress National Preserve around the clock in what environmentalists fear will have a devastating impact on the wildlife in the protected wetlands. 'We are dealing with a storm,' said Jae Williams, spokesman for Republican Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, who is credited as the architect behind the proposal. 'And the storm's name is immigration.' Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. The first detainees arrived Thursday at the facility, which will cost US$450 million to operate and consists of tents and trailers surrounded by razor wire on swampland about 45 miles (72 kilometres) west of downtown Miami. Republicans named it after what was once one of the most notorious prisons in the U.S. and have billed it as a temporary lockup that is essential to President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. Opponents decry it as a political stunt and fear it could become permanent. The Republican Party of Florida has taken to fundraising off the detention center, selling branded T-shirts and beer koozies emblazoned with the facility's name. 'The proposal was rolled out without any public input in one of the most ecologically sensitive regions of Florida, and arguably the United States,' said Eve Samples, executive director of Friends of the Everglades, which is among environmental groups that have sued to stop the project. Some GOP donors whose companies helped build and will assist in running the facility are being given seven-figure sums. Five Democratic state lawmakers who tried to visit the site Thursday issued a statement calling it 'a pay-for-play scheme to enrich GOP donors under the pretense of border enforcement.' One of the lawmakers, state Sen. Shevrin Jones, posted on social media that they were denied access. Hot, humid summers; regular flooding; and wildlife that includes alligators and venomous snakes make the area where the detention center is located inhospitable to long-term living. For the state emergency management staff leading the project, it wasn't unlike responding to another hurricane, just with more chain-link fencing, and barbed wire stretching more than 28,000 feet, according to state officials. Florida's leaders pride themselves on the state's disaster response capabilities, an expertise sharpened by tropical storms that sweep ashore year after year. Florida had a system and a command structure, as well as a fleet of vendors ready to help set up portable generators, floodlights, temporary kitchens and bathrooms, officials said. 'We understand how to act fast without bureaucracy in the face of any emergency,' said Kevin Guthrie, director of Florida's emergency management division, sitting alongside DeSantis and Trump in one of the temporary shelters during an unveiling event at the facility. 'We're able to translate this knowledge to what we did here,' Guthrie added. Human rights advocates say this is not a storm, but people — people who could be left indefinitely in inhumane conditions. Uthmeier said the location had the advantages of an existing site and a 10,500-foot (3,200 meters) runway, with the Everglades serving as a natural security perimeter. For DeSantis, the location in the rugged and remote Everglades was meant as a deterrent from escape, much like the California island fortress Republicans named it after. It's also another sign of how the Trump administration and its allies are relying on scare tactics to persuade people in the country illegally to leave voluntarily. Vendors chosen for the project include Lemoine CDR Logistics and CDR Health Care, companies led by Carlos Duart, a major Republican donor who along with his businesses have given millions of dollars to political committees for DeSantis, Trump and other GOP candidates, according to federal records. CDR Companies has been a go-to vendor for the state for years, and it provides engineering, emergency management and health care services across the country. Duart confirmed his companies' involvement to The Associated Press but declined to specify the services they're providing, citing a nondisclosure agreement. Asked if his businesses were picked because of his political support, he said, 'we get chosen because we do exceptional work.' A database of state contracts also showed that Granny's Alliance Holdings Inc. signed a US$3.3 million contract to provide meals at the facility. IRG Global Emergency Management had inked a US$1.1 million deal to provide 'flight and operational support' services. Some of the company's vehicles were seen at the facility, according to images shared with the AP. In a sign of its importance to the Trump administration's immigration agenda, the president toured the facility Tuesday. The White House posted on its social media account a graphic of the president standing besides alligators sporting Immigration and Customs Enforcement ball caps under text of 'Alligator Alcatraz: Make America Safe Again.' In recent decades, US$3.9 billion in federal and state funds have been allocated to restore grasslands in the Everglades. The ecosystem was degraded and transformed when a highway connecting Tampa and Miami was built in 1928. In response to the environmental groups' lawsuit over the detention center, the federal government said in court papers that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security hadn't authorized or funded the facility, which the state built and will operate. However, Florida plans to seek payment from the federal government. DeSantis has described it as temporary, with no plans for sewers, and claims there will be 'zero impact' on the Everglades. His administration reiterated that stance in court papers responding to the lawsuit. But opponents still fear it will become permanent. 'If it becomes more permanent, that is a bigger concern since that permanently evicts these species from the site so they can never come back,' said Elise Bennett, a senior attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity, which also joined the lawsuit trying to stop the construction. 'Our concerns are great now and will only become greater as this project proceeds.' Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
Miami Herald
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Contractors building Alligator Alcatraz have donated money to Florida GOP, DeSantis
Among at least 10 state contractors involved in the creation of Alligator Alcatraz, the facility in the middle of the Everglades the state has built for immigrant detainees, three have given money to Gov. Ron DeSantis or the Republican Party of Florida for statewide campaigns. One contractor stands out: CDR Maguire and its affiliated company, CDR Health. The companies and their married chief executives, Carlos Duart and Tina Vidal-Duart, have given a total of $1.9 million to the two state political action committees supporting DeSantis' bids for governor and to the Republican Party of Florida, according to Florida campaign finance records. Duart and Vidal-Duart are close allies of DeSantis and have come up repeatedly in recent reporting by the Herald/Times. Duart, a DeSantis-appointed FIU trustee, was mentioned in an article relating to the Governor's Inn, an exclusive hotel developed by a different donor that is closed to the public. Reporters saw him going in and out of the Inn on May 6 before driving off in his black Ferrari 812 Superfast — worth up to $400,000 new. Vidal-Duart serves on the board of the embattled Hope Florida Foundation charity that is spearheaded by state First Lady Casey DeSantis and that is central to a criminal investigation by the State Attorney's Office in Leon County over a $10 million transfer that came from a Medicaid settlement last year. CDR Maguire is a national emergency-management company based in Miami. It has seven affiliated companies, according to its website, that span from health care to financial services to bridge construction, all of which could be useful in developing temporary shelters such as the migrant detention center being built in the Everglades. CDR Health is among them. According to the company's website, employees at CDR Health's Miami office have treated more than 140,000 refugees, including Cuban and Haitian asylum applicants. Neither Duart nor Vidal-Duart returned a call from the Herald/Times on Wednesday. Two sources familiar with the construction of the Everglades site confirmed to the Herald/Times that the companies are working on site preparation and engineering, as well as staffing a medical facility. The detention camp is intended to house up to 3,000 immigrants before they are deported. It opened on Tuesday with a red-carpet-like rollout for political celebrities including President Donald Trump, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and DeSantis. Friendly press were given tours. It was set to accept its first detainees Wednesday night, state Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a post on X. The other state contractors include Deployed Resources LLC, the port-a-potty company Doodie Calls, GardaWorld, Garner Environmental Services, Gothams LLC, Granny's Alliance, Longview International Technological Solutions and SLS-WSP JV. GardaWorld Cash, one of several companies affiliated with GardaWorld – one of the world's largest security services companies, according to its website — gave $5,000 to DeSantis' Empower Parents political action committee in 2018. The political organization, which went by Friends of Ron DeSantis at the time, was created to support DeSantis' first bid for governor. GardaWorld will provide correctional staffing to the site, according to the two sources familiar with the plans. GardaWorld has also been eyed for Florida's immigration agenda before – they were one of the vendors picked by the state to fly migrants out of Florida. A representative from GardaWorld did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday evening. Gothams LLC is a 'disaster logistics response' company, according to its website. Founder Matt Michelsen gave $25,000 to the Republican Party of Florida in 2021 and $25,000 to DeSantis' Empower Parents political action committee in 2022. Gothams will provide technology services, according to the sources. A representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday evening. Gothams, which is based in Texas, has made millions constructing a holding facility in the Lone Star state, according to the nonprofit news organization Texas Observer. Billions awarded before While CDR Maguire's owners are the biggest donors to DeSantis and the state Republican party, their two companies haven't received the most money in state contracts compared to one of the other Alligator Alcatraz vendors. That prize goes to Texas-based Garner Environmental Services. The DeSantis administration is being sued by environmental groups given the remote construction site is in the ecologically unique Everglades. Garner has been awarded up to $1.6 billion for past state work, according to the Florida contracting system. Garner has worked with Florida for hurricane preparation and recovery. The firm will help build the detention center and assist with ongoing maintenance, according to the sources. A representative from the company could not be reached for comment on Wednesday evening. CDR Maguire and CDR Health have been awarded up to a $1 billion combined for past state contracting work. Gothams LLC has been awarded up to $310.5 million. GardaWorld has been awarded up to nearly $8 million. All the other state contractors confirmed by the Herald/Times have also received past contracting work, according to the state's contracting website: ▪ SLS-WSP JV: awarded up to $279 million ▪ Longview International Technology Solutions (LTS): awarded up to $221 million ▪ Doodie Calls: awarded up to $207.8 million ▪ Deployed Resources LLC: awarded up to $65.7 million ▪ Granny's Alliance: awarded up to $56 million Representatives from the companies did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday evening. SLS-WSP, like Garner, is helping build out the detention facility. LTS, like CDR Maguire, is involved in site preparation and engineering. Doodie Calls, aptly named, will provide facility sanitation. Granny's Alliance will feed detained migrants. Deployed Resources will provide janitorial services, according to the sources. Deployed Resources also has a $3.8 billion dollar contract with the federal government to operate a migrant detention camp in Texas, according to the Texas Tribune, and has focused on tent complexes. Miami Herald staff writers Siena Duncan and Churchill Ndonwie contributed to this story.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Republican Party of Florida joins ballot initiative lawsuit in federal court
The Joseph Woodrow Hatchett U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building in Tallahassee, Sept. 27, 2022. (Photo by Michael Moline/Florida Phoenix) A federal court has given the Republican Party of Florida the green light to intervene in the legal challenge to Florida's recently enacted law (HB 1205) overhauling the processes used to collect signatures for ballot initiatives. 'We're pleased the court has recognized our stake in defending Florida's election integrity laws. This is an important first step in securing transparency, accountability, and the millions of Floridians,' Republican Party of Florida Chairman Evan Power said in a prepared release. 'We will continue fighting to protect the integrity of Florida's ballot and ensure voters are informed and confident in the process.' Florida Decides Healthcare and Smart & Safe Florida have challenged the new law — which was a top priority for Gov. Ron DeSantis — on ground that it violates their rights to free speech and due process. Florida Decides is working to put before the voters in November 2026 a proposed constitutional amendment to expand Medicaid to lower income childless adults, as allowed under the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare. Smart & Safe Florida wants to put an amendment to legalize marijuana for adults on the ballot in November 2026. Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker listened to about three hours of testimony late last week on Florida Decides' and Smart & Safe Florida's request that he block certain provisions of the law while the legal challenge moves ahead — including a requirement that sponsors turn in completed petitions within 10 days after the voter signs the petition, as well as stepped up fines and criminal penalties. Florida legislators passed the law after citizens' initiatives to allow abortion and recreational pot nearly passed last November. Critics contend that the new law — with all of its restrictions on groups and who can collect signatures — will make it nearly impossible for outside organizations to ever place an initiative on the ballot in the future. Supporters argue the law targets fraud in the initiative process. It's the first legal skirmish over Florida's new ballot initiative restrictions In court hearing, attorneys debate palatability of new restrictions on citizens' initiatives
