It is with enthusiasm that I formally announce my candidacy for Florida’s 17th Congressional District. This district needs a leader who understands the community’s needs and is able to implement policies that will advance its priorities. As law practitioner for 22 years, I have represented clients in our community on a range of issues including: immigration, civil rights violation, discrimination, and foreclosure defense.

For several years, I served as Associate General Counsel for the NAACP; General Magistrate of the Miami-Dade Value Adjustment Board; Member of the Miami Dade Community Council 3; and Legal Advisor for the Caribbean-American Democratic Club. In 2000, I became the First Haitian American elected to the Florida House of Representatives. As a Florida Legislator, I sponsored several bills which passed in a Republican dominated chamber. In 2001, I collaborated with Congressmen Kendrick Meek and secured $2.3 million for the construction of the first Health Clinic to the Northeast Miami Dade community. I sponsored an amendment to a bill that sought to bar undocumented immigrants from driving in Florida. As a result, any such individuals whose cases are pending before the Immigration Court or the Department of Homeland Security can now get their licenses renewed for two years. In addition, I sponsored legislation that outlawed nepotism in government; protected children in charter schools from sexual predators; and brought millions of dollars into our community to cover HIV Aids programs; I revitalized and re-structured the cities of Little Haiti and Little River through the State Enterprise Zone plan. For more details about my legislative travails, visit http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Representatives/details.aspx?MemberId=4244&SessionId=37 The works needed to strengthen our community socially, politically, and economically is continuous. District 17 needs a Congressperson with hands on knowledge of the critical issues that devastate our community every day and who is able to work across the aisle to get the job done. To learn more about my congressional platform, visit my campaign website at www.brutusforcongress.com. I look forward to engaging with you in a series of discussion on how we can build a better community. I humbly ask for your prayers and support. Peace profound and God Bless, Phillip Brutus