Miami-Dade school board slaps down DeSantis' ban on face mask rules, becoming the third county in Florida to ignore the governor's crusade against mask mandates

• The Miami-Dade county school board voted Wednesday to approve a mask requirement in schools.
• The requirement directly defies Gov. Ron DeSantis' ban on such policies.
• This comes a day after state officials voted to investigate and possibly punish two other districts.

The school board overseeing the largest county in Florida voted Wednesday to approve a mask requirement in schools, becoming the third district in the state to defy Gov. Ron DeSantis' law banning mask rules amid threats from the governor that disobedient districts will be penalized.

Miami-Dade County Public Schools voted 7-1 to authorize required face masks in schools ahead of the first day of classes next Monday.

The policy allows for medical exemptions, but goes directly against DeSantis' ban on such requirements in the classroom.

The decision comes one day after education officials in the state voted to investigate and potentially punish Broward and Alachua County school districts for implementing policies that flout the governor's rule. The state Board of Education's decision is the first punitive move made against school districts since DeSantis threatened to withhold paychecks from districts that shirked the law last week.

Miami-Dade County Public Schools Superintendent Alberto Cavalho spoke ahead of Wednesday's meeting, saying he would do "the right thing" despite any consequences.

"The right thing includes, in my opinion, a mandatory mask policy," Cavalho said, according to The Miami Herald. "This is not a political statement. This is a protective tool."

DeSantis, for his part, has painted his opposition toward school mask mandates as a fight for parent rights, and despite growing resistance and polling that suggests majority support for required masking in public places, the Republican governor has refused to back down.

Gov. DeSantis' office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.