Moody, 49, becomes the second woman to represent Florida in the U.S. Senate, after Paula Hawkins, a Republican who served one term in the 1980s.

Senate Republicans hit their full 53-member majority on Tuesday as Sens. John Husted (R-Ohio) and Ashley Moody (R-Fla.) were sworn into office by Vice President Vance. The pair cemented the full majority after weeks of being stuck at 51 or 52 GOP members.

Students shouldn’t start catching buses at 5:30 am. That’s why Florida lawmakers passed a law in 2023, saying high school shouldn’t start until 8:30 am. But now they’re talking

Unless the bill is passed, Florida school districts will need to push back start times for older students by the start of the 2026-27 school year.

The idea behind later start times for Florida middle and high schools remains undisputed: If they get more sleep, teens tend to perform better academically and have fewer behavior and health problems.