All but five of the school board candidates endorsed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis won or advanced to runoffs in their primaries Tuesday, furthering the Republicans crusade against wokeness in schools as he looks to build a base of local allies.

In all, 25 of the 30 candidates backed by DeSantis and his 1776 Project PAC in the traditionally nonpartisan primaries were victorious, according to media reports .

We will never, ever surrender to the woke agenda. Florida is the state where woke goes to die, DeSantis said at an election-night party, using a term the right has adopted to deride efforts toward inclusivity.

With Florida Republicans behind him, DeSantis who didnt have a primary this week but will face Democratic Rep. Charlie Crist in November poured thousands of dollars into normally sleepy and apolitical races for positions that determine how schools are governed in some of Floridas largest counties.

DeSantis even managed to flip some counties school boards from left-leaning to conservative, the Tallahassee Democrat reported .

The DeSantis-aligned candidates focused on parental rights and transparency, while Democrats cited the challenges of recruiting and retaining educators in an increasingly hostile teaching environment.