“My overriding objective will be to return the Department of Justice to its core mission of keeping Americans safe and vigorously prosecuting criminals,” Bondi said. “That includes getting back to basics: gang, drugs cartels, our border and our foreign adversary.”

The Florida attorney general will serve as U.S. senator until the next general election in 2026 when the seat returns to the ballot.

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor is congratulating Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody on her appointment by Gov. Ron DeSantis to the U.S. Senate to succeed U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio.

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday named state Attorney General Ashley Moody to the US Senate, choosing a staunch ally to fill the seat set to be vacated by Marco Rubio, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state.

Moody, the state's attorney general, is Gov. Ron DeSantis’ pick to replace U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, who is poised to be the next Secretary of State for President-elect Donald J. Trump. The move is the latest in a carousel of seat hopping among Florida Republicans as Trump leaned heavily on Sunshine State hires to staff his incoming administration.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) will resign his seat upon his confirmation as Secretary of State, which gave Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) a decision on who to appoint.

Ashley Moody, Florida's attorney general, was selected by Gov. Ron DeSantis to replace Marco Rubio in the U.S. Senate.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed the person set to replace Marco Rubio in the U.S. Senate — Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody. Rubio is undergoing his confirmation hearing for secretary of state this week in Washington and if confirmed, his seat would become vacant.

US President-elect Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump kicked off the inaugural celebrations with a bang, attending a fireworks display at the Trump Sterling Golf Club in Washington DC on Saturday (Jan 19).

Pam Bondi, President-elect Donald Trump's choice to lead the Justice Department as attorney general, appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee for her confirmation hearing, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (Ben Curtis/AP)

US President-elect Donald Trump met with Nita and Mukesh Ambani ahead of his inaugural event. The Ambanis, who sources said were invited for the ceremony, posed for a photograph with Trump. The night before the inauguration Nita,