Fighter pilot and decorated combat veteran Jeff Witt announces his bid to fill the Florida House seat vacated by Gaetz

FIRST ON FOX: Fighter pilot and decorated combat veteran Jeff Witt announced Monday that he is entering the race to fill former Rep. Matt Gaetz’s seat representing Florida’s 1st Congressional District as a Republican who promises to “fight to control inflation.” to secure our borders and strengthen our military.” , while working with other GOP lawmakers to pass President Trump’s “America First” agenda, Fox News Digital has learned.

Witt, 38, is a two-time Harvard University graduate, businessman, decorated Afghanistan War veteran, F-35 fighter pilot and instructor with more than a dozen years of military service. Witt flew 82 combat missions in Operation Enduring Freedom.

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Witt currently serves as a policy advisor on the Trump-Vance Presidential Transition Team.

“I served my country in uniform for 14 years, and my commitment extends to the community in which my family and I live,” Witt told Fox News Digital. “I look forward to meeting voters across the district this campaign and proving to them that they can trust me to be a leader in Congress who will represent them with conviction, hard work and integrity.”

Witt told Fox News Digital that he would “fight to control inflation, secure our borders and strengthen our military.”

Jeff and his wife Courtney are the proud parents of four young children – Joan (6), Kirby (5), Grace (3) and Charlie (8 months).

“I will listen to the needs of my constituents and work on their behalf to make Florida’s 1st District the best place in America for veterans, businesses and families,” he said.

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Witt and his wife, Courtney, are parents to four young children: Joan, 6; Kirby, 5; Grace, 3; and Charlie, 8 months old. The Witt family lives in Niceville, Florida, where he is an active member of his church and teaches his children’s Sunday school.

Witt attended Harvard University for his undergraduate studies and was a Harvard football quarterback. He also received his Master of Business Administration from Harvard University.

Jeff served 14 years in the military and is a decorated Afghanistan War veteran. He flew 82 combat missions in Operation Enduring Freedom. (Jeff Witt)

Witt is a member of the Club for Growth 2024 and has already been endorsed by high-ranking former Trump administration officials, including former Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie.

“Jeff Witt is a patriot and a staunch supporter of President Trump and his America First agenda,” Wilkie told Fox News Digital. “As a former Secretary of Veterans Affairs under President Trump, I know that Jeff’s mission will always be to put warriors first. It is an honor to give Jeff my full support.”

Wilkie told Fox News Digital that Witt “stands for the right things – family and freedom.”

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“There will be no one better to represent Florida’s 1st Congressional District than Jeff Witt,” former Air National Guard director Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Stanley Clarke told Fox News Digital.

Witt served under Clarke, who praised him as “a great father, husband and officer who dedicated his life to serving this great country.”

“A true American patriot who will serve Americans with honor and distinction,” Clarke said of Witt.

Witt’s campaign comes after Trump selected Gaetz as his attorney general to lead the Justice Department in his second term.

Gaetz represented Florida’s 1st Congressional District from January 2017 until earlier this month, when he resigned after receiving the nomination for attorney general.

Witt was born in Orlando and now lives with his family in Niceville. Witt is a Christian and an active member of his church, where he teaches Sunday school to children.

Gaetz withdrew his name from running for attorney general on Thursday, saying his confirmation process was “unfairly becoming a distraction from the critical work of the Trump-Vance transition.”

Gaetz resigned his seat representing Florida’s 1st Congressional District earlier this month when President Trump nominated him to be attorney general. Gaetz has since withdrawn his candidacy to lead the Justice Department, but said Friday he would not seek to return to Congress.

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Witt joins a growing Republican primary field of candidates vying for the seat, including Florida state Sen. Michelle Salzman, Dr. Joel Rudman; Keith Gross and John Frankman; Bernadette Pittman; and former federal official and teacher Kevin Gaffney.

The date for the special election has not yet been set.

Witt is the brother of Patrick Witt, a member of the Trump transition team who ran for statewide office in Georgia in 2022 with the support of President Trump. Patrick Witt also served as deputy chief of staff in the Office of Personnel Management in the first Trump administration.