Ron DeSantis just called out his own state on national television.
Now he has a special session opening April 20 and a window to fix it before he leaves office forever.
The question is whether Florida Republicans have the spine to put a standalone bill on his desk.
DeSantis Called Cousin Marriage in Florida a Form of Stealth Jihad
He said it while signing a bill banning Sharia law in Tampa.
Florida still lets first cousins get married.
DeSantis didn't dance around it.
"Florida doesn't ban cousin marriage," he said. "That's a hanging curveball for us to do."
Then he named what's really behind it.
"Obviously that feeds into some of the stealth jihad that we see, when you're allowing things like that," DeSantis said. "It's things that are coming in from other cultures that are not consistent with the United States culture, and certainly our culture here in Florida."
https://twitter.com/majorbrainpain/status/2042031882926485629?s=20
That's the governor of Florida, at a Sharia law signing ceremony, pointing directly at the cultural invasion nobody in Tallahassee wants to talk about.
Sean Hannity admitted on air he didn't even know Florida allowed it.
Most Americans don't.
Florida Already Had the Votes to Ban First Cousin Marriage and Let the Bill Die Anyway
Here's what makes this infuriating.
The Florida Senate unanimously passed HB 733.
Unanimously.
Then it went back to the House – and died.
Not because anyone voted against banning cousin marriages.
It died because the cousin marriage provision was buried inside a sprawling Department of Health bill stuffed with medical marijuana rules, dental hygienist regulations, and neonatal nutrition guidelines.
https://twitter.com/CryptidPolitics/status/2042011089492168989?s=20
Legislators couldn't agree on the unrelated provisions, the session clock ran out, and the whole thing collapsed.
Rep. Dean Black, who added the marriage amendment, put it plainly.
"There are plenty of people here," Black said, "and there are plenty of people you can find to be your lifelong partner without looking to your first cousin."
He wants another vote.
DeSantis wants to give it to him.
Why DeSantis Is Connecting First Cousin Marriage to the Muslim Immigration Problem
This isn't a quirky regional tradition DeSantis stumbled onto.
In parts of the Middle East and North Africa, first-cousin marriages represent 25 to 50 percent of all unions.
Immigrants bring those practices with them.
https://twitter.com/DefiantLs/status/2042017142611017884?s=20
The United Kingdom has spent years grappling with elevated rates of genetic disorders in British-Pakistani communities directly tied to consanguineous marriages – children born with congenital heart defects and recessive diseases that could have been prevented.
That's what happens when a government decides cultural sensitivity matters more than protecting kids.
Florida, right now, has no law stopping it.
DeSantis already signed the Sharia law ban.
He already designated the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR as terrorist organizations – a designation a federal judge partially blocked, but which he is fighting to restore.
He already signed HB 1471, giving the state authority to dissolve organizations engaged in extremist activity and expel students who support them.
The cousin marriage ban is the next brick in that wall.
And the legislature already voted for it – they just couldn't get out of their own way long enough to pass a clean bill.
The Special Session Starts April 20
DeSantis is term-limited.
This is his last shot.
The special session opens April 20 – called for redistricting and budget work the legislature also failed to finish during the regular session.
https://twitter.com/WellsJorda89710/status/2042320483517919269?s=20
DeSantis has the power to add items to that call.
He's been signaling for weeks that he intends to.
"For some reason the ban on cousin marriages was dropped during the legislative process," DeSantis said in March. "Stay tuned."
Black wants a standalone bill this time – no DOH omnibus, no dental hygienists, nothing to hide behind.
Just a single clean vote: does Florida ban first-cousin marriages, yes or no?
Every senator already answered yes.
The House needs to follow.
DeSantis has nine months left in office and a special session opening in five days.
The legislature has no excuse left.
Sources:
- A.G. Gancarski, "Ron DeSantis Repeats Call for Legislative Ban of First-Cousin Marriages," Florida Politics, April 8, 2026.
- A.G. Gancarski, "Hanging Curveball: Gov. DeSantis Demands End to Cousin Marriage," Florida Politics, April 6, 2026.
- Eric Mack, "DeSantis Calls for Florida to Ban Cousin Marriages, Calling It Stealth Jihad," Fox News, April 7, 2026.
- "Florida Lawmakers Fail to Pass Ban on Marrying Cousins," ClickOrlando / WKMG, March 2026.
- "Florida Bill to Ban Marrying First Cousins Fails to Pass," The Hill, March 2026.
