Lincoln Diaz-Balart

(brother of Mario Diaz-Balart) Former US Representative for Florida's 21st district. Born in Havana, Cuba, August 13, 1954; graduated from the American School of Madrid, Madrid, Spain, 1972; B.A., New College, University of South Florida, Sarasota, FL., 1976; J.D., Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, 1979; lawyer, private practice; member of the Florida state house of representatives, 1987-1989; member of the Florida state senate, 1989-1992; elected as a Republican to the One Hundred Third and to the eight succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1993-January 3, 2011); not a candidate for reelection to the One Hundred Twelfth Congress in 2010. A Florida scion of an anti-communist political family, he served in the House for 18 years at a time when Cuban Americans exerted peak influence on U.S. policies. Diaz-Balart died on Monday Match 3 2025 at his home in Key Biscayne, Fla. He was 70. His father, a lawyer, was the majority leader in the Cuban House of Representatives before Fidel Castro seized power in 1959. A grandfather and uncle were also in politics. An aunt, Mirta Díaz-Balart, was Castro’s first wife and the mother of his son Fidel Castro Díaz-Balart, known as Fidelito. He graduated with a degree in international relations from New College of Florida, in Sarasota, in 1976, and with a law degree from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland in 1979. Mr. Díaz-Balart worked in private practice before becoming a prosecutor with the state attorney’s office in Miami-Dade County. Díaz-Balart is survived by his wife of 48 years, Cristina (Fernández) Díaz-Balart; their son, Daniel; his three brothers; and two grandsons. Another son, Lincoln Gabriel, died in 2013.