California's governor spent last week boasting about his state's GDP numbers.
DeSantis spent last week in England landing $300 million in aerospace sales and a rocket deal that puts Florida at the center of the next space race.
He just came home from the UK – and what he brought back is something Gavin Newsom couldn't buy with a press release.
Relativity Space Picks Florida Over Everyone Else
The headline from the 2026 Farnborough International Airshow is $300 million.
That is how much Florida companies reported in direct sales – in a single week on foreign soil.
Then DeSantis dropped the bigger news.
Relativity Space – an aerospace manufacturer building reusable rockets – is bringing a major new operation to Florida's Space Coast.
Thousands of high-skill, high-wage jobs.
Up to $134 million in state investment through Florida's Spaceport Improvement Program.
https://twitter.com/Paul_Renner/status/2082463578532028481?s=20
A new Terran R production facility at Cape Canaveral – and a 284-foot reusable rocket set to launch from Launch Complex 16 before the end of this year.
This is the same stretch of coastline where America launched men to the moon.
Relativity Space executive chairman Eric Schmidt said exactly why they chose Florida: "Expanding our capacity in Florida enables our ability to scale the Terran R program to support commercial, scientific, and national security missions."
Commercial. Scientific. National security.
That is not a company chasing tax breaks.
That is a company betting that Florida is where America wins the next space race.
Lloyd's of London Invited Florida Into the Room
DeSantis also presided over the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Space Florida and the UK Space Agency – a formal partnership between two of the world's premier aerospace powers.
Lloyd's of London sat down with Florida Insurance Commissioner Mike Yaworsky to discuss reinsurance collaboration and a potential research partnership through the Lloyd's lab incubator.
https://twitter.com/FLACommerce/status/2082211280132227541?s=20
Think about what that means.
Lloyd's of London is the global standard for financial risk – the institution that insures things nobody else will touch – and they pulled up a chair for Florida.
British Airways announced 18 additional flights between Orlando and London Heathrow on top of existing service.
International travelers vote with their wallets, and right now they are voting for Florida.
Three Years of Work Just Paid Off
DeSantis has been building this since 2023.
The Florida-United Kingdom Memorandum of Understanding signed that year was not a photo opportunity – it was the foundation for exactly these deals.
Every governor does trade missions.
Most come home with handshakes.
DeSantis came home with rocket factories, aerospace agreements, and a UK Space Agency partnership that puts Florida at the center of the international space economy.
https://twitter.com/RonDeSantis/status/2080421686969553093?s=20
Gavin Newsom's California – the state bragging about GDP last week – has driven Boeing toward layoffs, watched SpaceX move its headquarters to Texas, and can't keep its own aerospace talent from leaving.
Florida has three spaceports, 16 deepwater seaports, more than 20 major military installations, and the infrastructure to back up every deal signed in England.
DeSantis stood on the Farnborough floor and said it plainly: "The Free State of Florida anchors the international space economy."
That is not a campaign line.
That is a CEO who just proved it.
Sources:
- "Governor DeSantis Leads Successful International Business Development Leadership Mission to the United Kingdom," Executive Office of the Governor, July 25, 2026.
- "Relativity Space to bring thousands of new jobs to Brevard County: Space Florida," Local10 News, July 24, 2026.
- "Relativity Expansion To Add Rocket Production Capacity, Jobs On Florida's Space Coast," Exterra JSC, July 23, 2026.
- "Florida Officials Wrap Up UK Trade Mission Focused On Aerospace, Transport, And Academics," Tampa Free Press, July 28, 2026.
- "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Announces Aerospace Expansion And U.K. Space Agreement," Tampa Free Press, July 21, 2026.
