Matt Gaetz is following in the footsteps of another Republican who left Congress under a cloud of controversy … by joining Cameo.

A day after withdrawing from consideration as Donald Trump’s attorney general — and hours after the now-former Florida representative said in an interview that he would not return for the next Congress — Gaetz created an account on the app where celebrities and other public figures can charge hundreds of dollars or more for personalized video messages.

“I served in Congress. Trump nominated me to be US Attorney General (that didn’t work out). Once I fired the House Speaker,” reads the profile for the “Former Florida Congressman” that’s charging upwards of $500 a video. Semafor first reported Gaetz’s account.

Gaetz follows his one-time colleague, former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) — who was expelled from Congress late last year after a scathing ethics report into his conduct — in attempting to cash in on his fame on Cameo. Santos, who lists himself as a “Former congressional ‘icon,’” charges upwards of $250 for his videos.

Olivia Beavers contributed to this report.

MIAMI — Florida will conduct a special election on April 1, 2025, to fill the House seat vacated by Matt Gaetz, kicking off a sprint among Florida Republicans to represent the deep-red district.

Gaetz resigned from Congress after President-elect Donald Trump said he planned to appoint him as attorney general. He then dropped out of the running for that job on Thursday, citing the “distraction” of the upcoming confirmation process, which had raised questions about sexual misconduct and drug use allegations that he denies. Trump instead said he planned to nominate former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi.

On Friday morning, Gaetz said he did not plan to return to Congress but hasn’t announced what he’ll do next.

“I’m gonna be fighting for President Trump,” Gaetz told Charlie Kirk on his radio show. “I’m gonna be doing whatever he asks of me, as I always have. But I think that eight years is probably enough time in the United States Congress.”

It takes several months to fill the seat in the 1st District because of requirements around qualifying, overseas ballot deadlines and the need to hold both a primary and general election.

The primaries are set for January 28, but whoever wins the GOP nomination will be the heavy favorite over the Democratic pick.

“At Gov. Ron DeSantis’ direction, this special election is being conducted as quickly as statutorily possible,” Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd said in a statement. “We are committed to ensuring this election is held as soon as we are allowed to hold it by state law.”

GOP State Rep. Michelle Salzman filed on Tuesday to run for Gaetz’s 1st District, while Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said he was “strongly considering” doing the same. “We’ve got a historic opportunity to fight the swamp, end lawfare and return power back into the hands of Americans,” he wrote on X.

GOP State Rep. Joel Rudman also has filed to run, saying in a press release Friday morning that he would “stand in lockstep” with Trump. Another name floated for the District 1 seat is DeSantis chief of staff James Uthmeier.

If Patronis were to run, then DeSantis would get to select his replacement for CFO. That would help line up a challenge in 2026 to state Sen. Joe Gruters (R-Sarasota), who has already filed to run for the position and has the Trump endorsement — but is a longtime DeSantis foe.

An endorsement by Trump in the race would likely serve to anoint the future representative. Salzman endorsed DeSantis in the primary while Patronis — who’d been weighing a 2026 gubernatorial run — stayed neutral until DeSantis dropped out.

Florida will soon have another special election to schedule. Trump also tapped Rep. Mike Waltz to be his national security adviser. But that special election isn’t on the calendar yet because Waltz has not announced when he will resign and could serve at the start of the new Congress next year — which is not unusual for members nominated to serve in a president-elect’s administration.

The new member: Rep.-elect Kelly Morrison (D-Minn.)

How they got here: Morrison defeated her Republican opponent, Tad Jude, by 17 points in a suburban district that used to be solidly GOP but has favored Democrats in recent years. She’ll be replacing Rep. Dean Phillips, who is retiring after serving two terms in the House and mounting a primary challenge to Joe Biden last year.

Key issues: In the statehouse, under Gov. Tim Walz, Morrison helped write and pass bills shoring up the state’s protections for abortion patients and providers, laws that have made the state a destination for people from across the South and Midwest seeking to terminate a pregnancy.

She had hoped to do the same at the federal level. But now that Republicans have won a trifecta, she hopes to instead find common ground on policies like support for new parents and veterans, and plans to join fellow moderates in the New Democratic Coalition.

“My husband is a former Army Ranger and a combat veteran, and comes from a long tradition of military service, so veterans’ issues are near and dear to my heart and I’d be very interested in working to make sure that the people who have served us are getting the benefits that they need and deserve,” she said.

Background: Morrison, a sixth-generation Minnesotan raised by Republican parents, ran for the state Legislature in 2018 after practicing as an OB-GYN for about 20 years — motivated by Donald Trump’s win and his appointment of Supreme Court justices who later overturned Roe v. Wade.

“Those of us in the OB-GYN community knew what his presidency could mean,” she said. “We knew that was coming even before the leaked opinion.”

Campaign ads that caught our eye: Morrison put her medical credentials and pro-abortion-rights stance front and center, saying over footage of Republican male lawmakers that Congress “could really use an OB-GYN who will protect reproductive rights.” But she also stressed her moderate views and interest in compromise, pledging to “work with both parties” on issues from drug costs to public safety.

Fun fact: Until now, the ranks of OB-GYNs in Congress have been solely populated by conservative Republican men, including Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) and retiring Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas). Morrison argues the field has undergone a sea change in recent decades, becoming more progressive and diverse, and she hopes that is reflected on Blue Light News.

“Particularly at this moment in history, when we’re facing a Supreme Court hostile to women’s health, we need to have voices in Congress who have actually taken care of patients,” she said. “I think that we can provide important voices in helping to educate our colleagues and the American public.”

We’re spotlighting new members during the transition. Want more? Meet Reps.-elect Wesley Bell (D-Mo.) and George Latimer (D-N.Y.).