Kathy Castor

Kathy Castor and her husband have two daughters, and public service runs through her family.¹ Her father, Don, was a Hillsborough County judge, while her mother, Betty, served as Florida's education commissioner and president of the University of South Florida.¹ Castor graduated from Tampa's Chamberlain High School before studying at Emory University.²

After earning her law degree at Florida State University, Castor began her legal career at Florida's Department of Community Affairs.²¹ Her work included environmental and growth management issues, followed by private legal work representing local governments.¹ She also served as president of the Florida Association of Women Lawyers.¹

Castor served on the Hillsborough County Commission from 2002 to 2006 before entering Congress in January 2007.² Her early congressional assignments included the House Rules Committee.² She now serves on Energy and Commerce and is the senior Democrat on its Energy Subcommittee.¹ She chaired the former House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis from 2019 through 2022.¹

Her priorities include lower prescription costs, Medicaid expansion in Florida and protections for people with preexisting medical conditions.¹ She also advocates energy efficiency, coastal protection, stronger disaster recovery and closer engagement with Cuba.¹ In 2026, she faces Republican former state representative Mike Beltran in a district whose boundaries changed with Florida's new congressional map.³