Lincoln Diaz Balart, a former Cuban-American lawmaker who strengthened the embargo, dies at 70

Lincoln Díaz-Balart, who served in the Florida House, the Florida Senate, and the U.S. House of Representatives, died on Monday, according to relatives. He was 70.

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Lincoln Díaz-Balart had been diagnosed with cancer. His brother Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart announced his death describing him as a “defender of the silenced and oppressed” and the author of the democracy requirement for the lifting of U.S. sanctions against Cuba.

“Lincoln’s profound love for the United States, and his relentless commitment to the cause of a free Cuba, guided him throughout his life and his 24 years in elected public service, including 18 years in the U.S. House of Representatives,” Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart wrote.

Lincoln Díaz-Balart was born on Aug. 13, 1954, in Havana, Cuba. His father, Rafael Díaz-Balart, was a majority leader of the Cuban House of Representatives and opposed amnesty for Fidel Castro over an attack in 1953.

Lincoln Díaz-Balart’s aunt Mirta Díaz-Balart was married to Fidel Castro from 1948 to 1955.

After learning of his death, José Daniel Ferrer, a Cuban human rights activist, described him in Spanish as “a great Cuban” who was a “firm and tireless defender of the cause for the freedom of Cuba” and “a great friend of the pro-democratic opposition and the Cuban people.”

Lincoln Díaz-Balart was educated in Spain, England, and Florida. He was the student government president at the New College of Florida, and earned his law degree from the Case Western Reserve University in 1979, in Cleveland, Ohio.

Rep. Carlos Gimenez described him as “a titan, a great patriot, and a champion of freedom.”

Díaz-Balart, a Democrat turned Republican, served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1986 to 1989. He served in the Florida Senate from 1989 to 1992, and in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1993 to 2011.

In 1994, he became the first Hispanic in the history of the U.S. to be named to the House Rules Committee. He also made history in 2002 when he took to the Floor the legislation that created the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Former Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who worked closely with him, credited him for a law that protected hundreds of thousands of migrants who moved to the U.S. from Nicaragua when the leftist Sandinistas nationalized the financial sector.

A a member of the Congressional Hispanic Conference, he was also the co-founder of the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute, a non-profit and non-partisan organization.

Colombian lawmakers recognized Lincoln Díaz-Balart in 2004 for advocating for Colombian refugees in the U.S. He also supported the Temporary Protected Status of migrants from Haiti after the devastating 2010 earthquake.

“It’s a very sad day for Miami. Lincoln Díaz-Balart paved the way for those of us who continue to follow his work in Congress,” Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar said in a statement.

Aside from his brother Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart, Lincoln Díaz-Balart is survived by his brothers Rafael and Jose Díaz-Balart; his son Daniel Díaz-Balart; and his wife, Cristina Díaz-Balart.

This is a developing story.

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— Mario Díaz-Balart (@MarioDB) March 3, 2025