Maria Salazar

Maria Elvira Salazar is a Republican U.S. Representative representing Florida's 27th Congressional District, first elected in 2020 and assuming office in January 2021. Born in Miami to Cuban exiles, she grew up in Little Havana and Puerto Rico. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in communications from the University of Miami in 1983 and later a Master of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School in 1995. Before her political career, Salazar was a prominent television journalist for over three decades, working for major Spanish-language networks including Univision, Telemundo, and CNN Español. She is a five-time Emmy Award winner recognized for her coverage of Latin American politics, including a notable one-on-one interview with Fidel Castro. Her career also included reporting from the White House and covering the Salvadoran Civil War as a foreign correspondent. In Congress, Salazar has focused on immigration reform, economic development, and foreign policy in the Western Hemisphere. She currently serves on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs as Chair of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee and on the House Committee on Financial Services. She is known for her advocacy against socialist regimes in Latin America and her lead role in bipartisan immigration legislation.

Representative Salazar is a lead sponsor of the Dignity Act, a bipartisan immigration reform bill that proposes a "Dignity Program" allowing undocumented immigrants to earn legal status through work, restitution payments, and background checks, without providing a path to citizenship. On economic issues, she advocates for lower taxes, reduced government spending to combat inflation, and support for small businesses. Her foreign policy is centered on opposing socialist and communist regimes in Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, while supporting human rights and democratic stability in Latin America. Additionally, she supports environmental resiliency projects to address sea-level rise and flooding in South Florida and emphasizes the protection of Medicare and Social Security for seniors.