A board appointed by Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has filed a lawsuit against Disney, in response to complaints the entertainment giant had against conservatives, a fresh twist in the bitter legal battle between them.

A major corporation in the region with the Disney World theme park in Orlando, the American giant was recently sanctioned by Mr. DeSantis for his progressive position. The right-wing rising star, whose presidential ambitions should have been the subject of all rumours, in February ended the company’s special status in its state. A “targeted revenge”, according to lawsuits filed by Disney.

Since the 1960s, the company has enjoyed this special status with many advantages — administrative facilities, site self-management, favorable loans, etc. He drew the ire of governors last year by criticizing a bill limiting the teaching of subjects related to sexual orientation and gender identity in Florida elementary schools.

Following the revocation of Disney’s special status, the tourism regulatory body appointed by Mr. DeSantis had agreed to cancel a recent commercial agreement with the park that employs 75,000 people and attracts 50 million visitors a year.

The lawsuit filed Monday by the board seeks to maintain its control of the district that houses the theme park, voiding another agreement it had made with Disney. Ron DeSantis has made the fight against “wokism” one of his main battlegrounds: he accuses a group of “elite” of imposing their progressive ideology on a society that rejects it, and has vowed to build a fort on his land.

The 44-year-old curator used his fight against Disney as a banner, in his speech as well as in his recent autobiography, in which the subject occupies an entire chapter.