The political reaction has been swift after CBS News Miami obtained a leaked grand jury report finding the DeSantis administration "misappropriated" $10 million for political purposes.
The report, released Wednesday evening, details how money from a Medicaid settlement went to the Hope Florida Foundation, which is tied to First Lady Casey DeSantis’ charity effort. Yet, the money ultimately went to help defeat the 2024 ballot measure to allow recreational marijuana.
"These are powerful positions entrusted to people who are supposed to serve Floridians, not themselves, and they owe all of us an explanation," said Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried at a Thursday press conference.
The report said testimony shows Attorney General James Uthmeier, then-Gov. Ron DeSantis' chief of staff, was involved in directing the money.
"My opponent is a criminal," said Democrat José Javier Rodríguez, a former state senator who is running against Uthmeier in the general election. "He's a criminal who should resign. He should come clean and turn himself in."
The grand jury, though, said it didn't have enough evidence to charge anyone. It said no one would take responsibility or say they remembered who made the decision.
The grand jury still said the money was misused, but Uthmeier said it's the report leaker who committed a crime.
"Nobody did anything wrong here," he said at a Thursday press conference. "There was not even probable cause to move forward. This is a hoax."
Uthmeier even suggested a reporter asking him about the confidential report was breaking the law: "Are you trying to solicit a crime here in violation of the law?" he asked.
The leaked report also went into how the former attorney general, Ashley Moody, directed a deputy to sign off on the settlement.
Now a U.S. senator, Moody is facing Democratic challenger Angie Nixon this November.
"A state grand jury confirmed that instead of this money going towards helping sick kids get the health care that they need, they sent the money to biased political action committees," said Nixon, a Jacksonville representative.
Moody pushed back on the criticism, saying the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) negotiated the settlement:
There have been numerous reports that misrepresent the facts surrounding an AHCA settlement agreement that has been available to the public for two years. Understanding this is political season and there may be a tendency to misrepresent the facts, it is important to clarify…
— Ashley Moody (@AshleyMoodyFL) August 27, 2026
DeSantis appointed both Moody and Uthmeier to their new positions.
DeSantis also appointed Moody's former chief deputy who signed the settlement, John Guard, as a state appeals court judge.
Jason Weida, the former AHCA secretary, is now DeSantis' chief of staff. And DeSantis appointed Andrew Sheeran, AHCA general counsel at the time of the settlement, to a circuit judge position.
Meanwhile, Democrats like Florida gubernatorial candidate David Jolly are calling for a deeper investigation:
A bombshell report from CBS Miami revealed a Grand Jury found the DeSantis administration led a “sophisticated scheme to fund political activities” with $10 million in taxpayer money meant for children’s health care.
— David Jolly (@davidjollyfl) August 27, 2026
It’s clear from the Grand Jury report that our current… pic.twitter.com/yT8j6HPLUN
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This story was produced by WUSF as part of a statewide journalism initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
