Darren Soto was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2016 to represent Florida’s 9thCongressional District, which includes all of Osceola and parts of Orange and Polk Counties.
Born to a Puerto Rican father and Italian-American mother, Darren’s upbringing influenced his passion for public service and helping those in need. After learning the values of hard work from his parents, Darren graduated from Rutgers University and the George Washington University School of Law.
Upon graduation, Darren opened his own practice in Central Florida, where he practiced family law, civil litigation, and real estate law.
Darren will continue his longtime advocacy for greater infrastructure investment in our District.
First and foremost, he is engaging in critical oversight to help keep the I-4 Ultimate improvements on budget and on time, with an expected completion date of 2022. An expansion of Central Florida's main highway is long overdue and is critical to our future growth.
Second, he is closely monitoring SunRail Phase 2 which is set to open in early 2018 and will serve Meadow Woods, Buenaventura Lakes, Downtown Kissimmee and Poinciana. He is pushing for funding for SunRail Phase 3 to connect SunRail to Orlando International Airport.
Our vision is clear: with these projects, Central Floridians will finally have both rail and car options for their daily commute, and we will alleviate congestion on I-4!
Third, Darren will pursue a new control tower for the Kissimmee airport and a runway extension at Lake Wales along with local officials to continue to foster growth in these communities.
Fourth, Darren is fighting to fully fund and provide regulatory support to the multimodal center at Orlando International Airport which will serve as an international terminal, SunRail Station and Brightline Station.
Under this vision, one day soon, Central Floridians will be able to hop on at any SunRail Station, and take a plane for Orlando International anywhere or high speed train to West Palm Beach, Ft Lauderdale, or Miami.
Fifth, Darren will continue to work with local and state leaders to bring new transportation options to Polk County, including the Central Polk Parkway or other alternatives. We must have additional transportation options beyond US 27 and US 17-92 to keep our community moving forward!
Finally, Darren supports the further development of Florida's ports in neighboring coastal areas to increase our export capacity for agricultural and manufactured products.