Dotie Joseph

Dotie Joseph was born in Haiti but grew up in Miami, Florida. She earned a high school diploma from the Design and Architecture Senior High. Joseph has earned degrees from Yale University and Georgetown Law. Her career experience includes working as an attorney. She has served as the vice-chair for the Democratic Party of Miami-Dade and as the president of the Haitian Lawyers Association.[1][2]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a Miami-raised graduate of Yale University and Georgetown University Law Center, with a solid record of using my skills as a civil rights and government attorney and as a Democrat in the Florida House of Representatives to push policies to make life more affordable for working families.

As the daughter of a pastor and a nurse, I was taught to stand up for what’s right, and that we should love thy neighbor. From interning at Congress and with President Jimmy Carter at the Carter Center, and as a government attorney, I learned how government can actually work to address the needs of people.

As a civil rights attorney and State Representative, I know how the system works, and I know when it’s falling short. Across Florida, people are exhausted. Families are working harder than ever, yet basic necessities like housing, healthcare, and groceries keep slipping out of reach. We are tired of political culture wars and foreign distractions. It’s time to focus on us, our families, our communities, and our real needs right here at home.

I’m running because Floridians deserve a government that works for them, not against them. We deserve affordable living, real problem-solving, and leadership that puts people over politics. Together, we can build a Florida we can all be proud of, one where we care for our neighbors and every community has the opportunity to thrive.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Make Florida Affordable for ALL. Enough of the culture wars at home and foreign wars abroad--it's Time to Focus on Us. I want to focus on lowering the costs for housing, healthcare, insurance, groceries, and gas. Here are some bills I have filed - Real Affordable Housing Act (increase housing supply, limit insurance premium increases, authorize local governments to create land banks, limit algorithmic rent gauging, protect state housing trust fund), the Healthy Florida Act (healthcare for all), the Florida Economic and Prosperity Act (to lower grocery costs, support small businesses, protect immigrant labor force and communities); as well as bills to expand Medicaid, lower sales tax on gas, and address high insurance premiums.Protecting Civil Rights: As a civil rights and government attorney, this has been my life’s work. I've litigated employment discrimination class action cases that have been won at the Supreme Court, helped police-brutality victims get justice, negotiated bipartisan police reform post George Floyd’s murder, protected survivors of domestic violence, and have been standing up for immigrants and refugees before it was popular. I would use my veto power to protect against legislative overreach and efforts to further disenfranchise voters, or any other attacks on our rights. I would use my pardon power to protect women and doctors seeking and providing life saving reproductive care; and would fully restore the rights of returning citizensLess Hate, and More Love. Politics has become a game of fear-mongering, division, and hate. People are tired of it. I believe we should love thy neighbor, not hate and deport them. I believe in caring for the sick, feeding the hungry, housing those in need of shelter, honoring and caring for our seniors, and protecting our environment.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I want to make government work for all the people, and not just the 1%, so the areas of public policy that I am passionate about are those that most directly impact people–at the intersection of economic relief, civil rights, and people-centered governance.

We must Make Florida Affordable for ALL by tackling high costs for housing, healthcare, insurance, groceries, and gas through bold legislation like the Real Affordable Housing Act and Healthy Florida Act. I believe that healthcare is a human right so I want to ensure that more people are covered; and that we have a real safety net in place for our seniors who will be bearing the brunt of federal cuts to the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, Social Security from Trump's legislation.

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Dotie Joseph did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

Dotie Joseph did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2020 Candidate Connection survey.