# Alex Díaz de la Portilla

Alejandro Díaz de la Portilla (born August 25, 1964) is an American political consultant and former politician from Florida. A Republican, Díaz de la Portilla was a City of Miami commissioner for District 1 and a member of the Florida Senate from 2000 to 2010, representing parts of Miami-Dade County. He also served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1994 until his election to the Senate. Former Miami Commissioner Álex Díaz de la Portilla is no longer facing charges following an investigation into alleged bribery and money laundering.

## Early life and career

Díaz de la Portilla was born in Little Havana community of Miami. His career in politics began in 1994, when he was elected to the Florida House of Representatives, District 115. Díaz de la Portilla served in the Florida House until 2000, when he was elected to the Florida Senate in a special election. He was reelected to the Senate three times. He served as president pro tempore from 2002 to 2004.

## Later political career

Díaz de la Portilla ran for the Florida House of Representatives in 2012, for the Florida Senate in 2017, and for the Miami-Dade County Commission in 2018. In 2019, Díaz de la Portilla won a run-off election for the Miami Commission to represent Miami’s District.
In September 2023, Díaz de la Portilla was arrested on charges of money laundering, bribery, criminal conspiracy, and illegal compensation for official acts. The arrest affidavit cited a combined 14 charges against Díaz de la Portilla and William “Bill” Riley Jr., an attorney and lobbyist. Díaz de la Portilla pleaded not guilty.
He left office on September 15, 2023, after Governor Ron DeSantis suspended him from serving. The commission voted to leave the seat vacant until the November election. On November 21, 2023, Díaz de la Portilla was defeated by Miguel Angel Gabela in the election for Miami Commissioner District 1.

## Family

Díaz is one of the four children of Cuban exiles Miguel Ángel Díaz Pardo and Fabiola Pura de la Portilla García. His paternal great-grandfather served in the Cuban Senate; two of his sons served simultaneously in the Cuban House of Representatives. His maternal great-grandfather served as the Cuban Minister of Justice.
His brothers have also held elected office:
* Miguel Díaz de la Portilla served as a member of the Miami-Dade County Commission from 1993 to 2000 and succeeded Alex in the Florida Senate, serving from 2010 to 2016.
* Renier Díaz de la Portilla served two terms on the Miami-Dade County School Board (1996–1998 and 2006–2012). He also succeeded Alex in the House of Representatives, serving one term from 2000 to 2002.

## Electoral history
### Florida House of Representatives, 1990-1998

1990 Republican Primary, Florida House District 114 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Bruce Hoffman | 2,270 | 52.9% |
| | Republican | Thomas "Tom" Borell | 1,020 | 23.8% |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 1,000 | 23.3% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 4,290 | |
1992 Republican Primary, Florida House District 115 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 1,953 | 36.4% |
| | Republican | Carlos Manrique | 1,250 | 23.3% |
| | Republican | Manuel Casas | 671 | 12.5% |
| | Republican | Hugo D. Menendez | 554 | 10.3% |
| | Republican | Luis Rodriguez | 523 | 9.8% |
| | Republican | Raul Perez Sanz | 410 | 7.6% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 5,361 | |
1992 Republican Primary Runoff, Florida House District 115 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Carlos Manrique | 1,612 | 53.8% |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 1,386 | 46.2% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 2,998 | |
1994 Republican Primary, Florida House District 115 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 6,787 | 70.7% |
| | Republican | Carlos Manrique | 2,809 | 29.3% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 9,596 | |
1994 General Election, Florida House District 115 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | Unopposed | – |
1996 Republican Primary, Florida House District 115 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 8,968 | 87.8% |
| | Republican | Fred A. Naaman | 1,249 | 12.2% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 10,217 | |
1996 General Election, Florida House District 115 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | Unopposed | – |
1998 Republican Primary, Florida House District 115 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 2,747 | 57.7% |
| | Republican | Bernie Navarro | 2,016 | 42.3% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 4,763 | |
1998 General Election, Florida House District 115 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | Unopposed | – |

### Florida Senate, 1999-2006

December 14, 1999 Special Republican Primary, Florida Senate District 34 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 6,545 | 57.7% |
| | Republican | Carlos L. Valdes | 3,780 | 33.3% |
| | Republican | Charles Rousseau | 596 | 5.3% |
| | Republican | Arthur Arnau | 429 | 3.8% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 11,350 | |
January 25, 2000 Special General Election, Florida Senate District 34 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | Unopposed | – |
2000 General Election, Florida Senate District 34 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | Unopposed | – |
2002 Republican Primary, Florida Senate District 36 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 15,439 | 49.2% |
| | Republican | Carlos Lacasa | 13,186 | 42.0% |
| | Republican | Mike Gorrie | 2,764 | 8.8% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 31,389 | |
2002 General Election, Florida Senate District 36 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 66,945 | 100.0% |
| | | write-ins | 6 | 0.0% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 66,951 | |
2006 General Election, Florida Senate District 36 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 50,879 | 99.9% |
| | | write-ins | 30 | 0.1% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 50,909 | |

### Post-Senate electoral career

2012 Republican Primary, Florida House District 112 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 4,396 | 58.8% |
| | Republican | Gustavo Barreiro | 3,075 | 41.2% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 7,471 | |
2012 General Election, Florida House District 112 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | José Javier Rodríguez | 28,053 | 53.7% |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 24,195 | 46.3% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 52,248 | |
July 25, 2017 Special Republican Primary, Florida Senate District 40 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | José Félix Díaz | 7,678 | 57.8% |
| | Republican | Alex Díaz de la Portilla | 3,398 | 25.6% |
| | Republican | Lorenzo J. Palomares | 2,217 | 16.7% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 13,293 | |