Trump Names Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez U.S. Ambassador to Brazil
The move highlights growing federal roles for Florida politicians, with the Senate now set to vet the pick.
Overview
- President Trump submitted Daniel Perez’s nomination for U.S. ambassador to Brazil to the Senate, a filing sent on Monday that now awaits committee review and a confirmation vote.
- Perez has served in the Florida House since 2017 and became speaker in November 2024, and he is term-limited from the Legislature and will leave office in November.
- As speaker, Perez led actions that clashed with Gov. Ron DeSantis, including overriding the governor’s budget vetoes, probing and dismantling the Hope Florida charity, steering an alternate immigration session, and backing mid-decade redistricting.
- The Brazil nomination was part of a broader June 1 slate of federal appointments with several Florida-connected picks, including former Lt. Gov. Jennifer Johnson-Carroll for Trinidad and Tobago, who resigned in 2013 amid a prior criminal investigation.
- If confirmed, Perez’s move would extend a pattern of Floridians filling prominent federal roles and could shift state power as his departure triggers a leadership transition in the Florida House and prompts Senate hearings and possible holds.