Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez Is Stepping Down to Lead FIU

On Friday at 10 a.m., Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez, who has led many state cybersecurity efforts, is expected to accept a new role as Florida International University’s (FIU) interim president, ending her career in state government.

The move comes after previous speculation that Nuñez might become Florida’s 47th governor if President Donald Trump nominated incumbent Ron DeSantis as his defense secretary.

Instead, Trump nominated former Fox News host and army veteran Pete Hegseth, leaving DeSantis as Florida’s governor until his term ends in January 2027.

As for Nuñez, CBS News Miami and Politico are reporting that the lieutenant governor will be named FIU’s interim president Friday morning during a university Board of Trustees special meeting.

Once appointed, Nuñez would replace Kenneth Jessell, FIU’s current president, months before his contract expires on Nov. 9, 2025. Jessell has held the position a little more than two years, according to FIU’s website.

Also impacted by the transition would be Nuñez’s work as chair of Florida’s Cybersecurity Task Force.

The task force was created in 2019 during the regular legislative session via House Bill 5301. Once established, task force members focused on improving the state’s security program and prioritizing risks posed by identified threats.

In 2020 the task force disbanded, and the Florida Cybersecurity Advisory Council took its place in 2021. Since then, Nuñez and the council have focused on assisting state agencies in protecting their IT resources from cyber threats and incidents.

“When we came in 2018 and got elected, we started to look around and see that we needed to really invest in the infrastructure and the people we have working in cybersecurity,” Nuñez said during Government Technology’s Florida Public Sector Cybersecurity Summit.* As a result, “we were able to develop the task force, which was the precursor to the advisory council, and we were able to look at the state’s cybersecurity posture, governance and overall operation.”

Also championed by Nuñez is the state’s Cybersecurity Security Operations Center, which oversees the digital assets of partnering entities and identifies and mitigates threats in real time to ensure uninterrupted service and the state’s local government cybersecurity technical assistance grants program.

More information about Nuñez’s new role, including a link to view FIU’s Board of Trustees special meeting, can be found online.

*The Florida Public Sector Cybersecurity Summit is presented by Government Technology, which is part of e.Republic, Industry Insider — Florida's parent company.