James William Uthmeier (born November 20, 1987) is an American political campaign strategist and lawyer, who since 2021 has served as Chief of Staff to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. On January 16, 2025, DeSantis announced he would appoint Uthmeier the state's Attorney General following Ashley Moody's appointment to the U.S. Senate.
James Uthmeier | |
|---|---|
| Attorney General-designate of Florida | |
| Assuming office February 2025 | |
| Governor | Ron DeSantis |
| Succeeding | John Guard (acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | James William Uthmeier November 20, 1987 Destin, Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Jean Uthmeier |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | University of Florida (BS, MA) Georgetown University (JD) |
Early life
editUthmeier is a native of Destin, Florida.[1] He attended Fort Walton Beach High School and later graduated from the University of Florida, where he had competed for the Florida Gators track and field program.[2]
Career
editUthmeier worked from 2017 to 2019 in the U.S. Department of Commerce as a senior counsel and senior advisor in the Trump administration.[3] He then joined the office of Florida governor Ron DeSantis as deputy general counsel in 2019, then was promoted in 2020 to general counsel.[3] He was named Chief of Staff in 2021.[1]
From 2023 to 2024, Uthmeier served as campaign manager of Ron DeSantis's unsuccessful 2024 presidential campaign.[4]
On January 16, 2025, DeSantis announced that he would appoint Attorney General Ashley Moody to the United States Senate to succeed Marco Rubio in the event that he is confirmed to become United States Secretary of State.[5] He also anounced that he would appoint Uthmeier to succeed Moody as attorney general.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b Thompson, Jim (September 23, 2021). "Destin native James Uthmeier named new chief of staff for Gov. Ron DeSantis". Northwest Florida Daily News.
- ^ "James Uthmeier". Florida Gators.
- ^ a b "James Uthmeier". Ballotpedia.
- ^ Nehamas, Nicholas; Goldmacher, Shane; Haberman, Maggie (August 8, 2023). "DeSantis Replaces Campaign Manager in Major Shake-Up". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 8, 2023. Retrieved January 21, 2025.
- ^ Ogles, Jacob (16 January 2025). "Gov. DeSantis names Ashley Moody to succeed Marco Rubio in the Senate". Florida Politics. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
- ^ Gancarski, A.G. (16 January 2025). "Gov. DeSantis says James Uthmeier will be next Attorney General". Florida Politics. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
