Democrat · Florida's 20th District · 2026
Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Schultz is a mother of three and a breast cancer survivor.
Biography
A Washington snowfall once sent Debbie Wasserman Schultz door to door at the Capitol looking for people to go sledding, according to a 2009 Politico profile.1 She and her husband, Steve, have three children and make their home in Weston.2
Wasserman Schultz earned a bachelor's degree in political science in 1988 and a master's degree in 1990 at the University of Florida, where she was Student Senate president.3 She served in both chambers of Florida's legislature before entering Congress in 2005.2 She also previously chaired the Democratic National Committee.3
She publicly disclosed her breast cancer treatment in 2009, after undergoing seven major surgeries while serving in Congress and raising her family.1 That year she introduced the EARLY Act for breast cancer education; its provisions became law through the Affordable Care Act in 2010.2 Her record also includes federal pool and spa drain safety legislation enacted in 2007.2 She worked with Republican Senator Arlen Specter to promote the national observance of May as Jewish American Heritage Month.3
An Appropriations Committee member, she emphasizes affordable health care, protecting Social Security and Medicare, and restoring the Everglades.2 In 2026, she is the Democratic candidate against Republican Brent Andersen in the redrawn 20th District.4
Record and controversies
DNC resignation in 2016
Wasserman Schultz announced in July 2016 that she would leave the Democratic National Committee chairmanship after the convention, following the release of staff emails critical of Bernie Sanders and favorable to Hillary Clinton.5 Incoming DNC leaders apologized to Sanders and his supporters for the remarks and restated the party's commitment to neutrality in the nominating process.6