Laurel Lee

For other uses, see Laurel Lee (disambiguation).

Laurel Lee
File:Rep. Laurel Lee official photo, 118th Congress.jpg
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 15th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2023
Preceded by	Scott Franklin (redistricting)
30th Secretary of State of Florida
In office January 28, 2019 – May 16, 2022
Governor	Ron DeSantis
Preceded by	Mike Ertel
Succeeded by	Cord Byrd
Personal details
Born	Laurel Frances Moore (1974-03-26) March 26, 1974 Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Tom Lee
Children	3
Education	University of Florida (BA, JD)
Website	House website

Laurel Frances Lee (née Moore; born March 26, 1974) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representatives for Florida's 15th congressional district since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, she was a judge on Florida's Thirteenth Judicial Circuit from 2013 to 2019 and was the 30th Secretary of State of Florida from 2019 to 2022.

Legal career

Lee began her legal career as an attorney for the Carlton Fields law firm in 2003 before becoming an assistant public defender in 2005. Lee also served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida from 2007 until her appointment by then-Governor Rick Scott to a judgeship on the Hillsborough County Circuit Court in 2013. She was unopposed for election to a full six-year term in 2014.

Florida Secretary of State

Lee was appointed Florida Secretary of State by Governor Ron DeSantis on January 28, 2019, replacing Mike Ertel, who resigned after less than a month in office when a 2005 photo of him wearing blackface as part of a Halloween costume as a Hurricane Katrina victim surfaced.

In October 2020, weeks before the 2020 election, Lee sought to purge felons from voter rolls if they had outstanding court debts. Politico called the move "a surprise, late-hour move that comes after more than 2 million people already have voted in the presidential battleground." Lee's decision was not distributed to the wider public, only to local election officials.

In December 2021, Lee made a criminal referral to Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody seeking an investigation into potentially fraudulent signatures collected by Las Vegas Sands in a petition drive to get a constitutional amendment on the ballot for the November 2022 elections that would expand casino gambling.

On May 12, 2022, Lee announced she was resigning effective four days later, seven months before the 2022 election. She did not offer a reason for resigning. On May 17, she announced her candidacy for the United States House of Representatives in Florida's 15th congressional district in the 2022 elections. She won the general election by a wide margin.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:

• Committee on Homeland Security
  • Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection
  • Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security
• Committee on House Administration
  • Subcommittee on Elections (Chair)
• Committee on the Judiciary
  • Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet
  • Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance
  • Subcommittee on Responsiveness and Accountability to Oversight

Personal life

Lee is married to Tom Lee, a former member of the Florida Senate. They have three children. They live in Brandon, Florida. Lee is Protestant.

External links

• Congresswoman Laurel Lee official U.S. House website
• Campaign website
• Laurel Lee on the Border, Ukraine, and Elections
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at The Library of Congress
• Appearances on C-SPAN

Political offices
Preceded by Mike Ertel	Secretary of State of Florida 2019–2022	Succeeded by Cord Byrd
United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Scott Franklin	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 15th congressional district 2023–present	Incumbent
United States order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by Mike Lawler	United States representatives by seniority 402nd	Succeeded by Summer Lee

118th

Senate: ▌M. Rubio (R) ▌R. Scott (R)

House: ▌M. Díaz-Balart (R) ▌D. Wasserman Schultz (D) ▌V. Buchanan (R) ▌G. Bilirakis (R) ▌K. Castor (D) ▌B. Posey (R) ▌D. Webster (R) ▌F. Wilson (D) ▌L. Frankel (D) ▌N. Dunn (R) ▌M. Gaetz (R) ▌B. Mast (R) ▌J. Rutherford (R) ▌D. Soto (D) ▌G. Steube (R) ▌M. Waltz (R) ▌K. Cammack (R) ▌B. Donalds (R) ▌S. Franklin (R) ▌C. Giménez (R) ▌M. Salazar (R) ▌S. Cherfilus-McCormick (D) ▌A. Bean (R) ▌M. Frost (D) ▌L. Lee (R) ▌A. Luna (R) ▌C. Mills (R) ▌J. Moskowitz (D)