President Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, has withdrawn her name from the running to be appointed to fill the Senate seat being vacated by Senator Rubio, who will almost certainly be confirmed by his colleagues to be the next secretary of state. Ms. Trump’s decision to not move forward now allows Governor DeSantis to choose an ally to fill out the rest of Mr. Rubio’s term. 

Mrs. Trump had expressed interest in serving in Mr. Rubio’s seat until the 2026 special election, though announced Saturday she is working on something new that will be announced next month. 

“After an incredible amount of thought, contemplation, and encouragement from so many, I have decided to remove my name from consideration for the United States Senate,” she wrote on X. “I do have a big announcement that I’m excited to share in January, so, stay tuned.”

Before Mrs. Trump withdrew from consideration, the president-elect himself threw cold water on his daughter-in-law’s chances. When asked by a reporter earlier this month if he thought she would be tapped for the Senate seat, Trump responded, “I don’t. I probably don’t, but I don’t know.”

Mr. DeSantis had hinted in the past that he would not appoint Ms. Trump, given that she had no record of public service other than a brief stint as the co-chairwoman of the Republican National Committee — a post she held for just a few months this year. The Florida governor said in a statement that he would only appoint someone with “a proven record of results.” He further said that his decision would likely be made in early January. 

Several names have been floated for the seat, though Ms. Trump’s decision to withdraw gives Mr. DeSantis some breathing room to avoid a public pressure campaign from allies of the president-elect. Mr. DeSantis — who famously had a falling out with Trump when he ran against him for the Republican presidential nomination — has a long list of friends he could choose. 

Some have speculated that Mr. DeSantis would appoint a placeholder who would then not run in the 2026 special election, when Mr. DeSantis is term-limited from running for a third term as governor and could run for the seat himself. Mr. DeSantis previously ran for Senate in 2016 when Mr. Rubio announced his retirement in order to run for president, though Mr. Rubio ended up running for another term after his run for the White House failed. 

Like other governors who are given the opportunity to fill Senate seats, Mr. DeSantis could choose his own chief of staff, James Uthmeier. A former Massachusetts governor, Deval Patrick, tapped his chief of staff to briefly serve in the Senate when Secretary Kerry was confirmed to lead the State Department. New Jersey’s Governor Murphy did the same earlier this year after Senator Menendez resigned following his conviction on corruption charges. 

Other potential choices include legislative leaders or statewide elected officials, though if Mr. DeSantis wants to run for the Senate seat himself in two years, he may not go with another ambitious politician. 

The state’s lieutenant governor, Jeanette Nuñez, and the state’s attorney general, Ashley Moody, could receive an appointment from Mr. DeSantis, though neither woman has ruled out a run for governor in 2026 — plans that could be complicated by a two-year Senate appointment.