Florida Gov. DeSantis projects his vision of a conservatively-shaped Supreme Court in 2024

AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty

Ahead of his expected announcement to run for president, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis predicted that he would be in a position to appoint a seventh conservative justice to the Supreme Court if he is elected president in 2024 and serves two terms.

This statement arrives as a clear challenge to the Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump, who is limited to one more term, the New York Post reported.

DeSantis, 44, is speculated to join the GOP presidential primary this week. He mused on the potential retirement of Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Chief Justice John Roberts, and Justice Sonia Sotomayor, all in their late 60s to mid-70s, in the next eight years. These departures would offer the incoming president an influential chance to redefine the high court.

The Florida Governor voiced his predictions at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Orlando on Monday.

“If you replace a Clarence Thomas with somebody like a Roberts or somebody like that, then you’re gonna actually see the court move to the left, and you can’t do that," DeSantis warned. He emphasized the opportunity to “fortify Justices Alito and Thomas” and “make improvements with those others,” thus creating a resilient 7-2 conservative majority on the Supreme Court that could endure for a quarter-century.

DeSantis' comments sparked enthusiastic applause from the audience.

Given the constraints of the 22nd Amendment, Trump cannot seek the presidency in 2028 if he succeeds in reclaiming the White House next year, as he has already completed a full four-year term.

Trump, during his tenure, successfully nominated three of the six conservative justices on the court — Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett — all of whom voted last year to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Despite hailing the overturning of Roe v. Wade as “a great victory” last year, Trump has subsequently rebuked DeSantis for endorsing a “too harsh” six-week abortion ban in Florida. DeSantis countered with criticism of his own, challenging Trump’s ambiguous stance on the Florida heartbeat bill.

DeSantis is likely to contend with Trump for the Republican nomination, but polls have persistently shown the former president maintaining a double-digit lead for several months.