Congressman Joe Garcia

Representing the 26th District of Florida
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Biography

Congressman Joe Garcia was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2012. He is a dedicated public servant who has called South Florida home for his entire life. With scholarships and money he had saved from cutting grass with his grandfather on weekends, Congressman Garcia put himself through Miami Dade College and later the University of Miami where he completed his undergraduate studies and attended law school.

After graduating UM Law School, Gov. Lawton Chiles appointed Congressman Garcia to the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC), the state agency regulating utilities. Serving under both Democratic and Republican governors, he helped usher in the single largest energy rate cut in Florida’s history—meaning lower electricity bills for Florida’s families through the 1990’s. Congressman Garcia left the PSC in 2000 and was named Executive Director of the Cuban American National Foundation where he became one of the country’s leading advocates for human rights in Cuba and Latin America.

In 2009, President Obama appointed Garcia to serve as a director in the Department of Energy where he focused on lowering energy costs for America’s families and greater access to renewable sources of energy. He also previously served as director of the New Democratic Network (NDN) Hispanic Strategy Center.  

Congressman Garcia is a staunch advocate of comprehensive immigration reform and has been a leader on the issue. In 2013, he introduced the Venezuelan Liberty Act and H.R. 15 – two important pieces of legislation aimed at fixing our broken immigration system. In early 2014, Congressman Garcia introduced the HOME Act – legislation designed to help reform the nation’s current flood insurance regulations.     


Congressman Garcia and his family live in South Florida. He has one daughter, Gabriela (16).