GOP Sen. Ben Sasse Flees UF Students Protesting His Anti-LGBT Past, Sasse Is Sole Finalist To Lead University

The Gainesville Sun reports:

In his first visit to campus as the sole finalist to be University of Florida president, U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse faced questions Monday on his conservative political positions — along with a protest that disrupted a question-and-answer session and ended with him speeding off in a police vehicle.

UF announced last week that a presidential search committee was recommending Sasse, R-Neb., as the only finalist for the job. He spoke Monday to faculty, staff and students in three separate events, answering questions on such issues as same-sex marriage, tenure protections for faculty and climate change.

Students on Monday protested his selection as the only finalist for the job, at one point disrupting a question-and-answer session with chants of “Hey hey, ho ho, Ben Sasse has got to go.” Protestors then stormed into the ballroom before a session with staff was set to begin, continuing to chant while standing on chairs.

Jacksonville’s NBC affiliate reports:

“Sasse does not really believe in equality on the basis of sexual orientation,” said Nathan Knorst, a senior at the university. “So, how can he adequately represent the student body and faculty and UF’s core values, which are diversity, equity and inclusion?”

Some students were concerned about the secretive selection process used in selecting Sasse. A new Florida law allows universities to conduct much of the process outside of the state’s open meetings and public records laws.

Sasse, who would resign from the Senate to take the position, was recommended for the school’s presidency by a search committee. He still faces a vote by the school’s board of trustees and then must be confirmed by the state board of governors.

The university’s Daily Alligator reports:



After just ten minutes protesting outside, around 300 protestors moved up the staircase of Emerson Alumni Hall to the second floor. UF administrators and police stood stone-faced outside the ballroom, Emerson Hall echoing from the slams of dozens of fists on the solid wooden doors to the ballroom.

In 2015, Sasse spoke out against the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, the landmark case that federally protects same-sex marriage, saying marriage is meant to bring together a man and a woman so children can have a mother and a father.

In June, Sasse celebrated the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision that eliminated federal protections for abortion access.