Marco Antonio Rubio is the senior United States Senator from Florida. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives (2007-2009).

Born to a family of Cuban exiles, Rubio was raised in Miami, Florida and Las Vegas, Nevada. He attended Tarkio College and Santa Fe College before graduating from the University of Florida. He earned his law degree from the University of Miami School of Law in 1996 while interning for U.S. Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. In the late 1990s he served as a City Commissioner for West Miami. Rubio was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2000, representing the 111th House district. He was elected Speaker in November 2006.

Rubio announced a run for U.S. Senate in May 2009 after incumbent Republican Mel Martinez resigned. Initially trailing by double-digits against the incumbent Republican Governor Charlie Crist, Rubio eventually surpassed him in polling for the Republican nomination. Rubio won the Republican nomination after Crist opted instead for an independent run. In a three-way split against Crist and Democratic candidate Kendrick Meek, Rubio won the general election in November 2010 by a 19-point margin.

In April 2015, Rubio announced that he would not seek re-election to the Senate, instead choosing to run for president. He suspended his campaign for president on March 15, 2016, after losing the Florida Republican primary to the eventual winner of the presidential election, Donald Trump. On June 22, 2016, Rubio decided to run for re-election to the Senate, winning win a second term later that year.

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