Who is Blaise Ingoglia? DeSantis picks new Florida CFO
"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 cardplayer.com. 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
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