Darren Soto

Early life and education

Soto was born in Ringwood, New Jersey, to a Puerto Rican father, O. Lou Soto, and an Italian-American mother, Jean Soto. He attended Lakeland Regional High School, and then got his Bachelor of Arts degree from Rutgers University and his Juris Doctor from George Washington University.

Florida House of Representatives

In 2006, Soto ran for the Florida House of Representatives from the 40th district, unsuccessfully challenging Republican incumbent Andy Gardiner.

In April 2007, he won the crowded Democratic primary in a special election for the Florida House of Representatives from the 49th district to replace Republican incumbent John Quinones, who had resigned to run for the Osceola County Commission. In the general election, Soto defeated former State Representative Anthony Suarez, the Republican nominee, with 52 percent of the vote. Soto was overwhelmingly reelected in 2008 and 2010.

During his three terms in the Florida House, Soto supported laws to curb illegal street racing, passed the “John C Curry” Firefighter Death Benefit Act to protect families of fallen firefighters who died in training exercises, and the Bus Driver Notification Act to help school bus safety.

Florida Senate

In 2012, Florida Senate districts were redrawn, and Soto opted not to run for reelection in the House but instead to run for the newly created 14th Senate district, which included predominantly Latino areas of Orange, Osceola, and Polk Counties. He won his party's nomination uncontested and defeated Republican nominee Will McBride with over 70 percent of the vote.

In 2013, Soto proposed an amendment to require jury votes of 10 jurors rather than a majority of 7 for death penalties; the amendment did not pass. The following year, Soto led the Democratic House and Senate Caucuses in drafting a Congressional map during the 2014 Special Session on Redistricting.

During the 2015 legislative session, Soto helped secure $11.9 million in funding for Valencia College's Poinciana campus. He also successfully pushed for $20 million to restore the Kissimmee River. This earned him the Audubon Society of Florida's "Champion of the Everglades" award. He secured $10 million in Florida's budget to promote economic growth in Osceola County for a new facility to manufacture high-tech sensors, but Governor Scott vetoed the project.

In 2016, Soto helped steer funding to his district, including $15 million for the UCF Sensors Manufacturing Center, $12 million to complete the construction of the Poinciana Valencia College campus, $4 million in supplemental school construction money, $750,000 for the Northern Everglades and Lake Toho initiatives, and $150,000 for transition housing for veterans. He also supported that year Chloe's Law to construct barriers around water bodies adjacent to state roads, the Deaf Floridian's ID bill, and the Juvenile Clean Slate bill, which automatically sealed misdemeanor records for juveniles who reach 21 years of age and do not reoffend as adults.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

In 2016, Soto won the Democratic nomination to succeed Representative Alan Grayson, who stepped down to run for U.S. Senate, in Florida's 9th congressional district. Soto earned 36% of the vote in a four-way primary election. The district is Democratic-leaning and contains all of Osceola County and parts of Orange and Polk counties. Soto represented the majority of this district while serving in the Florida House of Representatives and the Florida Senate. The Orlando Sentinel endorsed him in his primary race, calling him an "effective lawmaker". In the general election, Soto defeated Republican nominee Wayne Liebnitzky, 57%–43%.

On August 28, 2018, Soto won the Democratic primary with 66% of the vote, defeating a challenge from Grayson.

On November 6, Soto won the general election, defeating Republican nominee Wayne Liebnitzky with 58% of the vote.

Soto ran for a third term and was virtually unopposed in the Democratic primary, with only one challenger, who dropped out in October 2019. In the November 3 general election, he defeated Republican nominee Bill Olson with just over 56% of the vote.

In 2022, Soto won his fourth term, running in the general election against Scotty Moore, whom he defeated with nearly 54% of the vote.

Soto ran for a fifth term in 2024 against Republican Thomas Chalifoux, a former Osceola County School Board member whose campaign was backed by the National Republican Congressional Committee and was largely self-financed. Soto won the general election with approximately 55 percent of the vote, securing a fifth term in the House.

Following Florida's adoption of a new congressional map in 2026, Soto announced that he would seek reelection in the redrawn 9th congressional district, despite the district becoming substantially more favorable to Republican candidates. Nearly 60 percent of the area in his existing district remained in the new district, which was extended south to include most of Okeechobee, Glades, Highlands and Indian River counties. The redistricting also divided the Central Florida Puerto Rican and Latino communities that had formed much of Soto's political base among several congressional districts. The Cook Partisan Voting Index shifted the district from D+4 to R+8, the largest partisan shift among Florida's 28 congressional districts under the new map.

Tenure

Soto was sworn into the House of Representatives on January 3, 2017, representing Florida's 9th congressional district. He entered office as Republicans controlled the White House and both chambers of Congress. At the time of his election, he became the first member of Congress of Puerto Rican descent elected from Florida. During the 115th Congress, he served on the House Committees on Agriculture and Natural Resources and was appointed to the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee and as an assistant regional whip.

Working with Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, Soto passed his first law in Congress in April 2017 through the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017. The act incorporated his Hurricane Hunters bill (H.R. 1008), which authorized the addition of two backup Hurricane Hunter aircraft to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) fleet to increase hurricane monitoring and preparedness. Later that year, following Hurricane Irma, he co-signed a bipartisan letter requesting that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) designate Orange, Osceola, Polk, Lake and Seminole counties for individual assistance. In December 2017, Soto and Republican Representative Carlos Curbelo secured the passage of the Foreign Spill Protection Act, which eliminated a $1 billion cap on damages for foreign oil drillers whose spills pollute U.S. waters.

In 2018, Soto advanced the Shark and Billfish Protection Act through the House Natural Resources Committee, while Nelson passed the Senate companion bill. The law, H.R. 4528, closed a loophole in the Billfish Conservation Act by making it illegal to sell billfish such as marlin, spearfish, and sailfish in the continental United States. It passed the House in June and was signed into law in August 2018. Later that year, Soto negotiated with the intercity rail operator Brightline on plans to connect its service with Central Florida's SunRail commuter rail system at Orlando International Airport. He tied for first among freshman members of the 115th Congress in laws enacted.

Following his reelection, Soto was appointed in 2019 to the House Committees on Natural Resources and Energy and Commerce. During his second term, he worked with Democratic Representatives Val Demings and Stephanie Murphy to renew federal grants to the Central Florida region, including more than $30 million for affordable housing and to prevent homelessness and $3.25 million for local anti-terrorism efforts. He also assisted in securing more than $3 million in federal grants for healthcare clinics in Osceola and Polk counties.

Committee assignments

For the 119th Congress:

Committee on Natural Resources

Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries

Committee on Energy and Commerce

Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade

Subcommittee on Communications and Technology

Subcommittee on Environment

Caucus memberships

Soto's caucus memberships include:

Future Forum

New Democrat Coalition

Congressional Hispanic Caucus (Deputy chair)

Problem Solvers Caucus

Congressional Progressive Caucus

Congressional Equality Caucus (Vice chair)

Political positions

Environmental policy

Soto received a perfect score of 100 for his environmental issues voting record from the National League of Conservation Voters in 2017. He introduced the Wild and Scenic River Study Act of 2017 (H.R.3961), which passed unanimously out of committee on January 17, 2018. On April 16, 2018, it passed unanimously out of the House. Soto helped lead opposition to Trump administration proposals to permit oil drilling off Florida's Gulf and Atlantic coasts during House Committee on Natural Resources meetings. He has also supported funding increases for the National Estuary Program the National Wildlife Refuge System program.

Gun control

Soto received an F rating from the NRA Political Victory Fund during his first term in Congress and supported numerous gun law reforms. On February 27, 2019, he voted for the Universal Background Check Bill. Soto received an A rating from the NRA in 2010, but his views changed after the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting. In the Florida Senate, he became a reliable vote for gun control, which ultimately led to earning a D rating from the NRA for his service there from 2013 to 2016.

After the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting, Soto called for a special session to prevent those on the FBI's No Fly List from purchasing firearms. Since 2017, he has been a reliable vote for gun law reform. After the 2018 Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, he proposed a "Gun Safety Action Plan" with five steps: universal background checks for gun purchases, keeping guns away from those who are a danger to themselves or others, banning assault weapons and bump stocks, creating a "red-flag" system to issue gun restraining orders, and disallowing anyone on the federal terrorism no-fly list from buying a gun. Soto also said gun control would be "one of those litmus test issues" in the 2018 midterm elections.

Immigration

Soto supports the DREAM Act. In June 2018, he traveled with several Democratic members of Congress to Homestead, Florida, to tour a detention facility, where he argued against Trump's zero tolerance policy and the separation of children and families.

He was an advocate in Congress for Alejandra Juarez, the wife of an Iraq combat veteran and mother of two American daughters, who was deported to Mexico due to Trump's policy. "Zero tolerance literally ripped this family apart", Soto said. "The administration is so extreme on immigration that they're deporting the spouses of military veterans."

Personal life

Soto is a singer, songwriter and guitarist for the Orlando folk rock band Orange Creek Riders, which has performed at events including the Orlando Fringe Festival, Planned Parenthood's Rock and Roe Concert, Delandapalooza, as well as various political events. The Orlando Weekly named Orange Creek Riders the "Best Congressional Folk Band" in its "Best Of" series. He also hosts a radio show and podcast, Rock and Politics, which combines discussion of political issues with related music.

On March 24, 2025, Soto announced that he was engaged to Sheyla Asencios. The two married on January 24, 2026 in Orlando. Soto was previously married to Amanda Betlow from 2013 until their divorce in 2024.