- Joe Garcia
Infobox Congressional Candidate
honorific-prefix =
name = Joe Garcia
honorific-suffix =
state = Florida
nominee = U.S. Representative for Florida, 25th District
incumbent =Mario Diaz-Balart
opponent =Mario Diaz-Balart (R)
election_date =November 4 ,2008
date of birth=birth date and age|1963|10|12
place of birth =Miami, Florida
date of death=
place of death=
spouse = Aileen Ugalde
party = Democratic
residence =Miami, Florida
alma_mater =University of Miami ,University of Miami School of Law
profession = attorney
occupation = formerexecutive director of theCuban American National Foundation
religion = Roman Catholic
website = [http://joegarcia08.com/ joegarcia08.com]Joe Garcia (born Jose Antonio Garcia on
October 12 ,1963 ) is aCuban American politician. Garcia, the formerexecutive director of theCuban American National Foundation , is the Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives inFlorida's 25th congressional district , running against incumbent RepublicanMario Diaz-Balart .Early life and education
Garcia was born in
Miami Beach, Florida , to Joe Garcia Sr. and his wife, Carmen, who had fledCuba afterFidel Castro took over. He graduated in 1982 fromBelen Jesuit Preparatory School . Garcia attendedMiami-Dade Community College before earning hisBachelor of Arts degree inpolitical science andpublic affairs in 1987 from theUniversity of Miami , where he was elected president of student government. He earned his J.D. from theUniversity of Miami School of Law in 1991.Career
From 1988-1991, Joe Garcia led the Exodus Project, a humanitarian relief effort which reunited over 10,000 families at no cost to US-taxpayers, saving Americans over $40 million.Verify source|date=September 2008
Garcia served on the
Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC) and also served as its chairman in 1999, as he ushered in the largest energy rate cuts in Florida's history. Verify source|date=August 2008 While serving on the FPSC, he also was chair of theNational Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). He was also Second Vice-Chair of theSoutheastern Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (SEARUC). Garcia was also appointed to theFederal Communications Commission Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service. Garcia was a member of theNational Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO).Garcia currently serves on the board of the
Spanish American League Against Discrimination (SALAD) and on the board of directors ofRegis House , adrug addiction treatment and prevention center for inner-city youth inMiami . Garcia is a member of the board of directors of the Cuban American National Foundation, and is a past president. He is currently the director of theNew Democrat Network Hispanic Strategy Center, and chairman of theDemocratic Party of Miami-Dade County .2008 campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives
Garcia announced on February 7, 2008, his candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives in Florida's 25th congressional district. In March 2008, the Garcia's campaign announced that noted political strategist
Joe Trippi , the campaign manager for 2004 presidential candidate and former Vermont governorHoward Dean , was joining the campaign team as Senior Media Adviser.In April 2008, Garcia held a controversial fundraiser with Representatives
Charles B. Rangel , who has met repeatedly with Fidel Castro and pushed legislation that would allow U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba and allow American firms to do business there. In defense of his association with Rangel, Garcia said he "has serious disagreements with Rangel on Cuba. But having a relationship with the chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee would help him bring federal money back to the district." [Reinhard, Beth [http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/v-print/story/488237.html Congressman's help in South Florida race may backfire] "Miami Herald", April 9, 2008]According to many commentators, Garcia is Mario Diaz-Balart's most formidable political opponent ever because of the amount of money that he has raised and the national media attention that he has generated [ http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/magazine/13CUBANS-t.html?ref=politics "...Diaz-Balart brothers are facing the first serious challenges of their careers..." ] [Miami New Times, "Best Politician of 2008: Joe Garcia", May 15, 2008] [The Sun Sentinel, "Garcia, sí! Diaz-Balart, no!" by Stephen Goldstein, May 7, 2008] [The Sun-Sentinel," Miami's Diaz-Balart brothers face strong challenges for congressional seats" by Laura Wides-Muñoz, Associated Press, March 21, 2008 ] [ http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/7/8/11151/12155 ] Nonetheless, the Rothenberg Political Report [ [http://rothenbergpoliticalreport.blogspot.com/2008/07/2008-house-ratings_29.html Rothenberg Political Report] , as of
2008-07-29 ] and CQ Politics [ [http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docID=ratings-house CQ Politics] ] have rated the seat as "Republican Favored." The Cook Political Report [ [http://www.cookpolitical.com/charts/house/competitive.php Cook Political Report] , as of2008-07-31 ] rated the district as "Likely Republican." The Crystal Ball has rated the district as "Safe Republican" [ [http://www.centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/2008/house Crystal Ball] , as of2008-07-30 ]A poll of the race, that was conducted conducted June 6 to 22, by noted Democratic pollster, Sergio Bendixen, showed Diaz-Balart ahead of Garcia 44 percent to 39 percent, with 17 percent undecided. [ http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/43384.html ]
As of August 6, 2008, Garcia has raised $1,001,313 with $789,667 cash on hand for the 2007-2008 cycle. Mario Diaz-Balart, the five year incumbent, has raised $1,188,193 and has $1,029,556 cash on hand during the same cycle. [ http://herndon1.sdrdc.com/cgi-bin/cancomsrs/?_08+FL+25 ]
Personal life
Garcia is married to Aileen Ugalde,
general counsel for the University of Miami. They have one daughter.ee also
*
United States House of Representatives elections in Florida, 2008
*Florida's 25th congressional district References
*Rieff, David [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/magazine/13CUBANS-t.html "Will Little Havana Go Blue?"] , "The New York Times", July 13, 2008
*Padgett, Tim "Big Trouble in Little Havana", "Time Magazine", August 15, 2008
*Clark, Lesley "3 Fla Congressional Candidates in Spotlight", "The Miami Herald", August 27, 2008, page A2External links
* [http://joegarcia08.com Joe Garcia for U.S. Congress] , Campaign website
* [http://opensecrets.org/races/summary.asp?ID=FL25&Cycle=2008 Campaign contributions] atOpenSecrets.org
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