Kathy Castor seeks reelection in Florida's 14th District

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, a Democrat who has served in Congress since 2007, is running for reelection in Florida's 14th Congressional District. The district covers parts of Hillsborough and Pinellas counties, including the Apollo Beach and Ruskin area.

Castor faces Republican Mike Beltran and Libertarian Brian Lambert in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election. She is certified for the ballot, according to BallotReady election data.

Candidate information

Party: Democratic
Office sought: U.S. House of Representatives, Florida 14th Congressional District
Residence: Tampa Bay area
Born: 1966
Family: Castor and her husband have two daughters. She is the daughter of former Hillsborough County Judge Don Castor and former University of South Florida president and statewide-elected education commissioner Betty Castor, according to her congressional biography.
Education: Diploma, Chamberlain High School, Tampa; bachelor's degree in political science, Emory University (1988); law degree, Florida State University (1991)

Castor says she is the first woman elected to represent the people of Hillsborough and Pinellas counties in Congress, according to her campaign website.

Experience and public service

Before entering Congress, Castor served as assistant general counsel at the Florida Department of Community Affairs, according to her congressional biography. She also served as a Hillsborough County commissioner, according to her campaign website.

Castor chaired the Hillsborough County Environmental Protection Commission and served as president of the Florida Association of Women Lawyers, according to her congressional biography.

In Congress, Castor serves as ranking member on the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Energy Subcommittee, according to her congressional biography. She is a member of the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party. She chaired the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis from 2019 to 2022.

Castor also co-chairs the Congressional Children's Health Care Caucus and the Academic Medicine Caucus, according to her congressional biography. She says she co-chairs the Congressional Air Force Caucus and the Congressional Special Operations Forces Caucus.

On the issues

Health care: Castor helped draft the Affordable Care Act that passed in 2010, according to her congressional biography. She says she has worked to protect patients with pre-existing conditions, lower prescription drug costs, protect Medicare for seniors and support expanding Medicaid in Florida.

Climate and energy: As chair of the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis, Castor led the release of a congressional action plan for a clean energy economy, according to her congressional biography. She says she championed passage of the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Offshore drilling: Castor has introduced legislation to keep oil drilling away from Florida's coast, including the bipartisan Protecting and Securing Florida's Coastline Act, according to her congressional biography. She also authored the Florida Coastal Protection Act to make the 235-mile drilling ban off Florida's west coast permanent, according to the biography.

Veterans: Castor says she has fought to improve veteran services, including health care for veterans exposed to toxins during their service and investments to expand the Tinker PreK-8 school on MacDill Air Force Base, according to her campaign website.

Cuba policy: Castor says she advocated to ease travel and spending restrictions on Cuban-Americans visiting relatives in Cuba and led an effort to resume direct flights between Tampa International Airport and Cuba, according to her congressional biography. She accompanied President Obama on his 2016 trip to Cuba.