José Javier Rodríguez (Florida politician)

Rodríguez grew up in Miami, and while he was growing up, attained the rank of Eagle Scout. He attended Brown University, receiving a degree in international relations in 2000, and, following his graduation, he joined the United States Peace Corps, serving in Senegal from 2000 to 2003 as a business advising volunteer. Upon returning to the country, Rodríguez attended Harvard Law School, graduating with his Juris Doctor in 2006, and then he moved back to Florida, where he taught as an adjunct clinical professor at the Carlos A. Costa Immigration & Human Rights Clinic at the Florida International University College of Law from 2008 to 2010 and then worked as an attorney for Florida Legal Services.

Rodríguez married Sonia Succar Ferré, the granddaughter of former Miami mayor Maurice Ferré, in 2014.[1]

In 2012, following the reconfiguration of the state's legislative districts Rodríguez opted to run in the newly created 112th District. He faced Alex Dominguez in the Democratic primary, which the Miami Herald called a "low-key" race compared to the acidic Republican primary.[2] Rodríguez was able to defeat Dominguez by a fairly wide margin, winning the primary with 58% of the vote and advancing to the general election, where he faced former State Senator Alex Díaz de la Portilla. Against Díaz de la Portilla, Rodríguez campaigned on supporting public education, encouraging economic growth,[3] and the fresh perspective that he would bring to the legislature, noting, "My opponent practically invented the business model of pandering to voters in Miami and then selling us out in Tallahassee."[4] Ultimately, Rodríguez defeated Díaz de la Portilla by a relatively slim margin, receiving 54% of the vote to his opponent's 46%.

In 2016, court-ordered redistricting created a new 37th district which included all of Rodríguez's house district. Rodríguez decided to run for the new seat against incumbent state senator Miguel Díaz de la Portilla, the brother of Alex. Rodríguez defeated Díaz de la Portilla in the general election, 49 to 46%.[5]

In 2020, Rodríguez lost his re-election bid to Republican Ileana Garcia by a narrow margin of 34 votes.[6] The ballot also included independent candidate Alex Rodríguez, who was previously registered as Republican; he received more than 6,000 votes. The name similarity, among other issues, suggested that Alex Rodríguez was "planted" by Republican groups to siphon votes from José Javier Rodríguez.[7][8] Former state senator Frank Artiles, a Republican, took credit for engineering Alex Rodríguez's run and Garcia's victory, reported The Miami Herald.[9]

• Florida House of Representatives - José Javier Rodríguez