Heightened Scrutiny: DeSantis’s Heel Fiasco Fit His Platform

Governor Ron DeSantis gives a speech at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida. Photo taken by Gage Skidmore.

In the final months of his now-suspended presidential bid, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis came under fire for allegedly wearing heels. The controversy started when a user on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, posted a close-up photo of the candidate’s cowboy boots from a campaign event in Tampa, Florida. In the photo, the ends of DeSantis’ shoes seem hollow, making it appear that DeSantis’ feet are being elevated at the back. This resulted in a frenzy of viral social media posts on TikTok and X alleging that he was wearing heel inserts in his boots. While DeSantis denied the allegations in a podcast interview with Patrick Bet-David, Politico recently published an article where shoemaking experts gave credibility to the rumors. As the phenomenon went mainstream, other presidential candidates jabbed at DeSantis over his supposed hidden high-heels. Vivek Ramaswamy referenced DeSantis’s shoes during a GOP debate and Nikki Haley joked about it during an interview on “The Daily Show.” The whole affair may have seemed to contradict DeSantis’ politics—he built much of his campaign on traditional gender norms, which contrasted deeply with the idea of him, a man, wearing heels. But, in reality, the heels actually reinforced the narrative around gender that DeSantis was seeking to promote.

A focus on maintaining traditional gender roles was at the forefront of DeSantis’ campaign rhetoric. Referring to what he alleged was a push to introduce progressive gender ideals in the classroom, he told an audience that Republicans “have also had major fights to ensure gender ideology has no place in our schools.” In an interview with Christian organization “Focus on the Family,” DeSantis said that “there is a concerted effort to inject this gender ideology and sexuality into the discussions with the very youngest kids.” Even the type of shoe DeSantis wore during the campaign contributed to this idea; the cowboy boots themselves evoked a rural male-ness that fit with his traditional ideas about gender.

DeSantis’s legislative record also sought to reinforce traditional norms and ideas about gender and sexuality, and the bills he signed as governor codified transphobia and homophobia into law as a result. In 2021, DeSantis signed the “Fairness in Women’s Sports Act” which banned transgender women from competing in women’s athletic events. Critics argued that the law encouraged transphobia and discriminated against transgender students. In response to the critics, the governor stated that, “In Florida, girls are going to play girls sports and boys are going to play boys sports.” DeSantis clearly displayed his opposition to the perceived threat that transgender athletes posed to traditional gender roles. In 2022, the governor signed another bill popularly referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” law, which initially prohibited “classroom instruction” on “sexual orientation or gender identity” up through the third grade. His Board of Education later expanded the prohibition to all grade levels. Some critics voiced concerns about the bill’s vague language; because the law does not clarify what qualifies as “classroom instruction,” it could be interpreted as banning all discussion of non-traditional LGBTQ+ issues. In defense of the law, DeSantis told reporters that teaching kids that “they can be whatever they want to be” was “inappropriate.” The DeSantis platform classifies those with non-traditional ideas about sexuality as a threat to children, placing himself in opposition to this perceived threat. The idea that DeSantis could have been secretly wearing heels then seems hypocritical; it would be a clear violation of the traditional masculinity and social conservatism that he made a centerpiece of his campaign.

But, counterintuitively, the heels may have fit quite well with the ideals of traditional gender roles because height functions as a strong signal of masculinity in our society. The extra height provided by DeSantis’s shoes allowed him to reinforce his own place in the traditional gender hierarchy by more strongly signifying himself as a male. This signal is highly significant; from a practical standpoint, the height boost may have genuinely helped his electoral chances. Statistically, taller candidates have been more likely to win presidential elections, and one study even found that voters may prefer taller leaders in elections. While these studies do not conclusively establish a causation between height and electoral prospects, there seems to be enough of a case for the preference that DeSantis decided to incorporate it into his campaign. And, ironically, heels have not always signified femininity; they used to be worn by men. Originally, heels were specially designed to help male soldiers keep their balance on horseback. Then in the 17th century, Western European aristocrats took up the use of heels to help increase their stature–it was a signifier both of wealth and masculinity. It was only until relatively recently, in the 18th century, that women also adopted the footwear and heels fell out of fashion among those they were originally intended for. While heels themselves are no longer popular with men, the tall stature they signified still helps define masculinity. DeSantis’s heels didn’t contradict traditional gender norms, but instead reinforced them by more strongly signifying him as a male—even though he was caught in the act.

While the scandal may have been an embarrassment to the DeSantis campaign, the possibility that he was wearing heels to enhance his height shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Indeed, the heels cemented the underpinnings of an ideology built upon traditional concepts about gender.

Jacob Gold (CC ’27) is a staff writer at CPR from Castle Rock, Colorado. He plans to study political science and has particular interests in civil rights, free speech, and misinformation. Outside of CPR, you can find him substituting walks in Riverside Park for hikes in the Rockies.