Matt Gaetz

Matthew Louis Gaetz II born May 7 1982 is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the US representative for Floridas 1st congressional district since 2017 The district includes portions of Walton County and most of Escambia Okaloosa and Santa Rosa counties A member of the Republican Party he is widely regarded as a staunch proponent of farright politics as well as an ally of former president Donald Trump The son of prominent Florida politician Don Gaetz and grandson of North Dakota politician Jerry Gaetz Gaetz was raised in Fort Walton Beach Florida After graduating from the William Mary Law School in Williamsburg Virginia he briefly worked in private practice before running for state representative He served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2010 until 2016 and received national attention for defending Floridas controversial standyourground law In 2016 he was elected to the US House of Representatives and was reelected in 2018 2020 and 2022