This Was Ron DeSantis' Job Before Becoming Florida’s Governor

We also found Alabama's Kay Ivey and Georgia's Brian Kemp former jobs!

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Gov. DeSantis at Florida's Leone's Italian Market and Pizzeria.

Gov. DeSantis at Florida's Leone's Italian Market and Pizzeria.

In 2018, elections for state governor were held in 36 out of the nation's 50 states. During which, a record-shattering 16 women were major party nominees for the position, nine of whom were successful, making the current number of female governors tied with the all-time high number set in 2004.

This was also a year of standout gains for 2SLGBTQIA+ candidates who made historic representation gains with Colorado's Jared Polis becoming the first openly gay man to be elected governor in the United States, and Oregon's Kate Brown, who is bisexual, winning reelection in her state.

Fast forward to the midterm elections — 36 states will once again elect or reelect their governors. But just what were some of the governors, some of whom are up for reelection, up to before they took over the governor's mansion?

We analyzed the former roles some governors had before taking office: including Florida's Ron DeSantis, Alabama's Kay Ivey and Georgia's Brian Kemp.

Was Ron DeSantis a Navy SEAL?

After graduating from Harvard Law School, now-Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis served as an adviser to a Navy SEAL team in Iraq, where he earned a bronze star medal for his service.

He then put his law degree to use as a federal prosecutor before running for Congress in 2012.

What did Kay Ivey do before being governor?

Though Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey grew up working on her family's farm, she became a high school teacher after graduating from Auburn University in 1967 and was even a bank officer before starting her career in politics.

In 2002, she was elected to the position of state treasurer and successfully ran for lieutenant governor in 2010, where she was the first female Republican candidate to win the role in the state's history.

What was Brian Kemp's job before governor?

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp owns a small real estate investment and property management business called Kemp Properties, and he was previously the president of the Athens Area Home Builders Association.

But before being governor, from 2003 to 2007, he served as a state senator and ran to be state agriculture commissioner in 2006 but lost the primary election. He then served as Georgia's secretary of state from 2010 to 2018.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.

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Laurie Bergeron
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