Under Hope Florida cloud, DeSantis to host forum with Uthmeier, Donalds

Michael Van Sickler, Tampa Bay Times on Aug 31, 2026

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TAMPA, Fla. — In politics, as in comedy and life, timing is everything.

Witness Tuesday night’s “Leadership Forum with Gov. Ron DeSantis.” Florida’s term-limited governor will host a forum with the leading Republican candidates in the state.

Ordinarily, such a collaboration with DeSantis would be welcome for any Republican hopeful in Florida. After eight years in office, he remains popular with the GOP base.

But the forum comes a week after the leak of a grand jury report that concluded DeSantis’ administration misused taxpayer money for political purposes. Although the jury declined to charge anyone with a crime, citing lack of transparency from witnesses, it concluded that $10 million from a Medicaid settlement was misappropriated through the Hope Florida Foundation and used to oppose a ballot proposal to legalize marijuana.

Along with DeSantis, a central figure in the report is James Uthmeier, Florida’s attorney general. At the time covered by the investigation, Uthmeier was DeSantis’ chief of staff. The report mentions Uthmeier 17 times. The jurors noted that along with having authority over those who appropriated the $10 million, Uthmeier was also involved in directing much of the taxpayer money into two political committees under his control.

DeSantis appointed Uthmeier attorney general last year. They will share the stage during Tuesday’s candidate forum as Uthmeier’s Democratic opponent, Jose Javier Rodriguez, is calling for his resignation.

Contradicting the report, DeSantis and Uthmeier claim there was no diversion of Medicaid money and that the only crime committed was the leak of the document last week. Uthmeier told reporters that even asking about the grand jury report represented a potential crime.

The three other Republican candidates on stage Tuesday with DeSantis had no role in the Hope Florida scandal. Two of them are seeking reelection. They are Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia and Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson.

The fourth candidate, U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, is seeking to replace DeSantis. Once political allies, their relationship cooled in 2023 when Donalds endorsed Donald Trump for president instead of DeSantis.

DeSantis didn’t endorse Donalds until after the Aug. 18 primary. And he did so only along with the other Republican candidates on the ballot.

Tuesday will be the first time they’ve shared an appearance since a news conference about Alligator Alcatraz in July 2025.

The Donalds campaign has considered associating with DeSantis a good thing. During nearly every stop, Donalds compliments DeSantis and talks about continuing with his legacy.

But Donalds is now getting pressured by his Democratic opponent, former U.S. Rep. David Jolly, to demand a new investigation into Hope Florida. Doing so would put him publicly at odds with DeSantis, risking the support of those who who still back the governor. Considering that Donalds won less than half of the GOP vote in the primary, he can’t afford to alienate Republican voters.

It’s not clear if the subject will even come up. A DeSantis spokesperson said the governor will be asking questions of Uthmeier, Donalds, Ingoglia and Simpson. Then audience members will get a chance.

The forum is scheduled for 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the TPepin’s Hospitality Centre at 4121 N. 50th St. in Tampa.

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