Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Monday that his wife, Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis, is battling breast cancer.
DeSantis, 41, is the mother of the couple’s three children, the youngest of whom was born after the governor took office in January 2019.
“As she faces the most difficult test of her life, she will … not only have my unwavering support but the support of our entire family, as well as the prayers and well wishes from Floridians across our state. Casey is a true fighter, and she will never, never, never give up,” the Republican governor said in a statement.
Casey DeSantis has played an active role in her husband’s administration, advocating for people with mental health issues. She often appears with him, children in tow, at bill signings and other official events.
Republican and Democratic leaders put partisanship aside during an outpouring of support for Mrs. DeSantis on social media.
.@FLCaseyDeSantis As a #breastcancer survivor also diagnosed at 41 and a 14 year survivor, I’m wishing you the strength you need to fight and win this battle. The breast cancer survivor sisterhood knows no party. Please reach out if I can help in any way. https://t.co/GKb6oFLRbS
— Debbie Wasserman Schultz (@DWStweets) October 4, 2021
The leading Democrats hoping to challenge Ron DeSantis, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, also tweeted their support.
Praying for the First Lady and her family. Here’s to a successful treatment and a speedy recovery. Almost every family has been touched in some way by cancer, and our hearts are with you in this fight. God bless.
— Charlie Crist (@CharlieCrist) October 4, 2021
Likewise, House Speaker Chris Sprowls and Senate President Wilton Simpson, both Republicans, expressed their prayers for Mrs. DeSantis.
The prayers of the entire Senate family are with our wonderful First Lady Casey DeSantis, Governor DeSantis and their entire family as they face this serious health challenge. pic.twitter.com/V7fbvFen22
— Wilton Simpson (@WiltonSimpson) October 4, 2021
Of course, not everyone on social media was as gracious.
One user said he would find it hard to pray for DeSantis’ wife because of the Florida governor’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic —
Gonna be really hard to offer thoughts and prayers to Casey DeSantis, wife of a man who botched a pandemic that led to the deaths of 55,000+ Floridians.
— 💀DeathMetalViking💀 (@DeathMetalV) October 4, 2021
Another said he would not be “wasting” prayers on the DeSantis family —
My prayers go out to the families of the 50,000+ Floridians who have died from Covid because of desantis. Sorry I’m not wasting them on his wife Casey desantis pic.twitter.com/V8dXXSQjy0
— ᵗʰᵃᵗᵒⁿᵉᵍᵘʸᶠʳᵒᵐᵗʰᵃᵗᵖˡᵃᶜᵉ 🫠🇺🇸🏳️🌈🇺🇦 (@Justdrewisme) October 4, 2021
The Associated Press contributed to this article