Passage of the bill was, in many ways, the culmination of a legislative session in the nation’s third-largest state unlike any in recent memory. It was a session in which the GOP-led Legislature’s constant focus on “culture war” issues resulted in lawmakers approving policies to grant more power to parents over what their children learn, heighten scrutiny on school instruction and books, and ensure there will be turnover among local school boards, which have been frequent targets of the state GOP…

The long line of legislation shows Republicans in the nation’s biggest battleground state are focused primarily on appealing to the GOP base in a crucial election when the Governor’s Mansion, three Cabinet seats and all 160 seats of the Florida Legislature are up for grabs. The action in Tallahassee is likely an early demonstration of the Republican Party’s strategy to win back the White House by focusing on some of the most divisive, hard-right policy bills the nation has encountered in recent times.

For the GOP faithful in the state, the legislative action marks a moment that they have been looking forward to for a long time. They say it explains why DeSantis has burst into the national consciousness as a possible 2024 presidential contender and potential heir to the populism that propelled former President Donald Trump into office.