Casey DeSantis to Sylvester Stallone as he leaves LA: ‘Welcome to the Free State of Florida!’
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida’s First Lady Casey DeSantis welcomed Sylvester Stallone to Florida following the well-known actor’s announcement that he and his wife will be leaving California “permanently” for the Sunshine State.
“Welcome to the Free State of Florida!” the first lady said on social media.
“In addition to respecting and protecting your God-given, constitutional right to be free, you can also buy toothpaste without having an armed guard in CVS unlock it for you.”
Stallone announced the move from Los Angeles to Florida Wednesday during the second season premiere of his family’s reality television show, “The Family Stallone.”
“After long, hard consideration, your mother and I have decided it’s time to move on and leave the state of California permanently and we’re going to go to Florida,” Stallone told his two daughters during the show.
He went on to say that he and his wife “already have the place” and it’s a “done deal.”
According to U.S. Census Bureau data, Florida added over 365,000 residents in 2023, the second largest increase in the country. Only Texas added more residents with over 473,000.
Furthermore, Florida finished with a 1.6% growth rate, finishing just slightly behind South Carolina for first place.
Ninety-three percent of population growth occurred in Texas, Florida, North Carolina, and Georgia in 2022. A 67% growth rate also took place among those four states in 2023.
On the other end, New York dropped 102,000 residents in 2023, most in the nation. California, in second place, lost 75,000 residents.
North Port-Sarasota is the fastest growing U.S. city in the country, according to data released in January by the business and employment website LinkedIn.
In January, U-Haul said Texas and Florida finished at the top of their Growth Index list for 2023. California placed last on the list.
Florida’s high ranking has occurred for three consecutive years, U-Haul said.
Florida’s second place ranking to California’s 50th came as Gov. Ron DeSantis had debated California Gov. Gavin Newsom in late 2023.
“[Newsom] is the first governor to lose population,” DeSantis said at the November debate. “They actually, at one point, ran out of U-Hauls in the state of California because so many people were leaving.”
“In Florida we showed that conservative principles work,” he said. “This country must choose freedom over failure.”
