Florida’s new “Alligator Alcatraz” immigrant detention center, being built in the center of the Everglades, has boosted the national profiles of Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General James Uthmeier, despite pushback and legal challenges from opponents who say the facility is inhumane and will damage the swamp region’s ecosystem. 

The effort is putting the Republican governor back in the national spotlight for the first significant time since his failed 2024 election bid and bringing attention to Uthmeier, who was appointed to office but will be on the state ballot for reelection in 2024, reports NBC News on Saturday.

Uthmeier, also DeSantis’ former chief of staff, spearheaded the move to create a South Florida version of the infamous Alcatraz prison, which was considered to be inescapable because it was located in the San Francisco Bay. 

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