Lincoln Díaz-Balart | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromFlorida's21st district | |
| In office January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Mario Díaz-Balart |
| Member of theFlorida Senate from the 34th district | |
| In office August 30, 1989 – November 17, 1992 | |
| Preceded by | Ileana Ros-Lehtinen |
| Succeeded by | Alberto Gutman |
| Member of theFlorida House of Representatives from the110th district | |
| In office November 18, 1986 – August 28, 1989 | |
| Preceded by | Ileana Ros-Lehtinen |
| Succeeded by | Miguel De Grandy |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Lincoln Rafael Díaz-Balart y Caballero (1954-08-13)August 13, 1954 |
| Died | March 3, 2025(2025-03-03) (aged 70) Key Biscayne, Florida, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic (before 1985) Republican (1985–2025) |
| Spouse | Cristina Fernandez |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent |
|
| Relatives | José Díaz-Balart (brother) Mario Díaz-Balart (brother) SeeDíaz-Balart family |
| Education | New College of Florida (BA) Case Western Reserve University (JD) |
Lincoln Rafael Díaz-Balart (bornLincoln Rafael Díaz-Balart y Caballero; August 13, 1954 – March 3, 2025) was a Cuban-American attorney and politician. A member of theRepublican Party, he was theU.S. representative forFlorida's 21st congressional district from 1993 to 2011. He previously served in theFlorida House of Representatives and theFlorida Senate. He retired from Congress in 2011 and his younger brother,Mario Díaz-Balart, who had previously representedFlorida's 25th congressional district, succeeded him. He was chairman of theCongressional Hispanic Leadership Institute.[1] After leaving Congress, he started a law practice and a consulting firm, both based in Miami, Florida.
Díaz-Balart was born inHavana, Cuba, on August 13, 1954,[2] to Cuban politicianRafael Díaz-Balart and Hilda Caballero Brunet. His aunt,Mirta Díaz-Balart, was the first wife of the lateFidel Castro. Her son, and his cousin, was the lateDr. Fidel Ángel "Fidelito" Castro Díaz-Balart. His uncle was the Cuban-Spanish painter,Waldo Díaz-Balart.[3][4]
He was educated at theAmerican School of Madrid in Spain;New College of Florida; andCase Western Reserve University, from which he earned aJuris Doctor degree.[2] He was involved in a Miami private practice for several years before holding elective office.[2]
In 1982, Díaz-Balart ran for aFlorida House of Representatives seat for District 113 as aDemocrat and lost to the Republican,Humberto Cortina.[5]
Díaz-Balart, as well as his immediate family, were all members of the Democratic Party. Díaz-Balart was the former president of the Dade CountyYoung Democrats and the Florida Young Democrats, as well as a member of the executive committee of the Dade County Democratic Party.[6]On April 24, 1985, Diaz-Balart, his wife, and brother Mario switched their registrations to Republican.[7]
Díaz-Balart served as a Republican in the Florida House of Representatives from 1986 to 1989 and in theFlorida Senate from 1989 to 1992.[8][9][10]
In 1992, Díaz-Balart won election to the House of Representatives and remained in the House until his retirement in 2011.[2]
In general, Diaz-Balart's voting record was moderate by Republican standards. His lifetime rating from theAmerican Conservative Union is 73.[11]
In 1994, he was one of only three Republican incumbents not to sign the RepublicanContract with America. He objected to provisions in its welfare reform section that would deny federal programs to legal immigrants.[12][2]
In 2006, he voted against theFederal Marriage Amendment and in 2009 voted for theMatthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which expanded the federal hate crime law to include a person's perceived gender, sexual orientation, identity or disability.[13] In December 2010, Diaz-Balart was one of fifteen Republican House members to vote in favor of repealing theUnited States military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban onopenly gay service members.[14][15]
He was a sponsor of theDREAM Act which seeks to facilitate access for illegal immigrant students to post-secondary education by allowing states to have power to determine requirements for in-state tuition.[16]
He achieved passage into law of historic pieces of legislation – such as theNicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) in 1997,[2] and thecodification of theUnited States embargo against Cuba in 1996[2] (requiring that all political prisoners be freed and multi-party elections scheduled in Cuba before U.S. sanctions can be lifted).
Diaz-Balart played a prominent role in theCuban-American lobby, and was active in the attempt by relatives ofElián González to gain custody of the six-year-old from his Cuban father.[17] Diaz-Balart was a member of theCongressional Cuba Democracy Caucus.[18]
On September 29, 2008, Diaz-Balart voted against theEmergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008: "American taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for the irresponsible behavior of Wall Street executives. The average citizen is forced to play by the rules, yet many who did not now get a massive bailout from taxpayers in this plan. This is fundamentally unfair. By bailing out reckless behavior we encourage future reckless behavior."[19][20]
In March 2010, Diaz-Balart publicly called the passage of thePatient Protection and Affordable Care Act "a decisive step in the weakening of the United States."[21][22]
In 1992, Diaz-Balart defeated fellow State SenatorJavier Souto in the Republican primary for the newly created 21st District. No other party put up a candidate, assuring Diaz-Balart's election. He was unopposed for reelection in 1994, 1996, 2000, and 2002 and defeated Democrat Patrick Cusack with 75 percent in 1998.[2][23][24]
In both 2004 and 2006, Lincoln Diaz-Balart was unsuccessfully challenged byFrank J. Gonzalez, a Libertarian Party candidate in 2004 andDemocrat in 2006. In 2004, Diaz-Balart won with 72.8% of the vote; Gonzalez ran for U.S. House as the Libertarian Party candidate and earned 54,736 votes or 27.2% of the total.[25] In 2006, Diaz-Balart won with 59.5% of the vote; Gonzalez managed to earn 45,522 votes or 40.5% according to the Florida Department of State's Division of Elections website.[26]
Diaz-Balart's Democratic opponent in 2008 was formerHialeah MayorRaul L. Martinez. It was initially thought that Diaz-Balart would face his toughest race to date. Although the 21st District is considered the most Republican district in the Miami area, Martinez was thought to be very popular in the area. Nevertheless, Diaz-Balart won re-election with 58% of the vote.[27]
In February 2010, Diaz-Balart announced his intention not to seek re-election.[28] His brother, CongressmanMario Díaz-Balart, ran to succeed him,[29] and won unopposed.
Díaz-Balart was married to Cristina Fernandez and had two children: Lincoln Jr. and Daniel. Lincoln Jr. died on May 19, 2013, at the age of 29.[30] His family said he had battled depression for many years.[31]
Díaz-Balart's brother,Mario Díaz-Balart, previously represented the 25th district of Florida, moved to the 21st district, but moved back to the 25th district afterredistricting. He had two other brothers:José Díaz-Balart, a journalist[8] and anchorman of the Saturday edition of theNBC Nightly News, and Rafael Díaz-Balart, an investment consultant.[32][8]
Díaz-Balart died from cancer at his home inKey Biscayne, Florida, on March 3, 2025, at the age of 70.[33][34][8]
| Florida House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theFlorida House of Representatives from the110th district 1986–1989 | Succeeded by Miguel De Grandy |
| Florida Senate | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theFlorida Senate from the 34th district 1989–1992 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| New constituency | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromFlorida's 21st congressional district 1993–2011 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
