Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced he will nominate Ashley Moody, the state’s attorney general, to fill Marco Rubio’s Senate seat. Rubio is Donald Trump’s choice for Secretary of State.

Moody has been Florida’s attorney general since 2019, replacing Pam Bondi, Trump’s pick for U.S. attorney general. Rubio had served in the Senate since 2011 as part of the Tea Party wave in the 2010 elections.

Over the past five years, Moody has defended DeSantis’ conservative agenda, including successfully repealing federal pandemic regulations in 2021, blocking the federal government’s release of migrants into the country and repealing a federal rule on background checks at gun shows. She has sued the Biden administration nine times since 2023, according to the Miami Herald.

At a news conference Thursday, Moody pledged to rein in “out-of-control federal agencies” and cut spending.

“I am ready to fight for this nation and fight to ensure that President Trump implements the ‘America First’ agenda on day one,” Moody said at the announcement Thursday at an Orlando hotel.

DeSantis said Thursday that Moody has a “proven track record.”

“I am pleased to say that we have had an attorney general who has consistently stood up for the values ​​we all share,” DeSantis said.

Although Moody was at the top of the list DeSantis would appoint to fill Rubio’s seat, Lara Trump, the president’s daughter-in-law and former chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, was also reportedly in the running until she publicly dropped out.

“The only person who wanted to see Donald Trump (in the seat) was probably me,” Lara Trump told the Daily Mail, explaining his reaction when she told him.

Moody will serve until the seat becomes vacant in 2026. She will likely face challengers in the primary including U.S. Representative Cory Mills, a Republican who recently said he would run for the seat in 2026.

DeSantis has the authority to appoint a new person to fill the vacant Florida attorney general position. A top choice, according to Axios, is James Uthmeier, DeSantis’ current chief of staff.

When Trump took office, Republicans controlled both chambers of Congress by narrow margins. Republicans hold 53 of 100 seats in the Senate, with Vice President JD Vance a tie-breaking vote if needed, and 200 of 435 seats in the House.