Ari Abraham Porth (born September 25, 1970, Washington, D.C.) is an American attorney,

jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyzes and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal education in law (a law degree) and often a Lawyer, legal prac ...

, and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. From 2004 to 2012, he served as a Democratic member of the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the C ...

. Porth currently serves as a

Circuit Court Circuit courts are court systems in several common law jurisdictions. It may refer to: * Courts that literally sit 'on circuit', i.e., judges move around a region or country to different towns or cities where they will hear cases; * Courts that s ...

Judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

Broward County, Florida Broward County ( ) is a County (United States), county in Florida, United States, located in the Miami metropolitan area. It is Florida's second-most populous county after Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and the List of the most ...

Personal life

After attending public schools in both

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, Porth graduated from

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...

and went to work for

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

Bob Graham Daniel Robert Graham (November 9, 1936 – April 16, 2024) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 38th List of governors of Florida, governor of Florida from 1979 to 1987 and a United States Senate, United States senat ...

as a legislative aide in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

While working for the Senator, he focused on issues related to veterans, substance use and AIDS. Porth moved back home to South Florida where he received his J.D. degree from

Nova Southeastern University Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is a Private university, private research university in Florida with its main campus in Fort Lauderdale-Davie, Florida, Davie, Florida, United States. The university consists of 14 colleges, offering over ...

and served as an Assistant State Attorney for

Broward County Broward County ( ) is a County (United States), county in Florida, United States, located in the Miami metropolitan area. It is Florida's second-most populous county after Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and the List of the most ...

from 1995 through 2012 where he tried juveniles and adults for crimes against property and person. Porth's last assignment at the SAO was with the Truancy Division, working to improve school attendance in partnership with law enforcement, schools, children, parents, and the courts. Porth has held leadership roles and remains active in a number of civic and charitable organizations including the Associated Marine Institute at Ft. Lauderdale, the B'nai B'rith Justice Unit, Hatikvah House, and Children's Home Society. Porth lives with his wife, Tatyana, and their son, Gabriel in Coral Springs, Florida.

Political career

In 2004, Porth was first elected to the

in 2004, succeeding Stacy Ritter. He served District 96, which represented parts of

Coral Springs Coral Springs is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 134,394. Approximately northwest of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Fort Lauderdale, it is a pri ...

, Tamarac,

Lauderhill Lauderhill is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is a principal city of the Fort Lauderdale metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 74,482. Etymology The development that eventually came to be kn ...

Sunrise Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning, at the start of the Sun path. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon. Terminology Although the S ...

, and

North Lauderdale North Lauderdale is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is a principal city of the Miami metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 44,794. History At its creation in 1963, it was largely farmland on th ...

. He served on the Policy Council, the Health Services Policy Council, the Health Regulations Committee, the Criminal Justice Appropriations Committee, the Select Committee on Standards of Official Conduct and the Select Committee on Florida's Strategic and Economic Future. Porth also chaired the Legislature's Early Childhood Caucus and the Broward Legislative Delegation. Two of the most significant bills Porth sponsored and passed in the House include SB 2142 Protecting Florida's Investments Act of 2007 and SB 2654 the Window of Opportunity Act of 2008. The first divested Florida's pension plan investments from any dealings with Iran or Sudan and served as landmark legislation nationally. The second required certain insurance companies to provide behavioral therapies for children on the Autism spectrum. During the 2011 session, Porth worked on prison sentencing reform for nonviolent offenders (HB 917) and passed a bill authorizing Florida's first public boarding school for at risk youth and creating services for juveniles who have gone through the delinquency system (SB 404).

References

External links

Official site at the Florida House of Representatives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Porth, Ari Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives Living people 1970 births People from Coral Springs, Florida 21st-century members of the Florida Legislature