DeSantis reappoints Moms for Liberty cofounder to Florida ethics commission

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is attempting to put Moms for Liberty cofounder Tina Descovich on the Florida Commission on Ethics for the second time.

DeSantis previously appointed Descovich to the board in 2023, but in a rare instance of defying the governor’s wishes, the Republican-dominated Florida Senate shot it down the following year.

The Florida Commission on Ethics “serves as the guardian of the standards of conduct for officers and employees of Florida and its political subdivisions,” according to the commission’s website. The board is intended to be an “independent commission” that investigates “complaints of breach of the public trust by public officers and employees.”

Senators expressed concerns over Descovich’s affiliation with the conservative activist group she cofounded, though she told a senate panel she views her role on the ethics commission to be separate from her work with Moms for Liberty.

Moms for Liberty emerged on the Florida political scene as a parental rights organization, decrying what it called “woke indoctrination,” which included COVID lockdowns, teachers unions and “pornographic” books. The group rose to prominence by inundating school board meetings with its supporters and codifying their policy demands in legislation like the state’s Parental Rights in Education Act, or the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

Descovich once again faces scrutiny by the state senate, which rejected a special session called by DeSantis last month, indicating that the legislature may not move in lockstep with the governor as it has in years past.