Vicki Lopez is an American politician. She serves as a Republican member for the 113th district 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 ...

, first elected in 2022 by securing 51 percent of the vote.

Early life

Lopez was born in

Tampa Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

, and raised in

Fort Myers A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

. She attended the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

. She is a longtime activist who today runs Miami-based VLL Consulting. She is a former member of the Lee County Commission and served under three Governors, specializing in education, criminal and juvenile justice.

Political career

In November 1990, Lopez was elected to the Board of County Commissioners for Lee County, Florida. She resigned in January 1993. In 1997, Lopez was convicted for

honest services mail fraud Honest services fraud is a crime defined in (the federal mail and wire fraud statute), added by the United States Congress in 1988. The idea of this law was to criminalize not only schemes to defraud victims of money and property, but also sc ...

and sentenced to 27 months in federal prison. Her sentence was commuted by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

in November 2000, after serving more than 15 months. The conviction was vacated by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in February 2011. Lopez’s experience led to a lifetime of activism in criminal justice reform, assisting others who have faced wrongful convictions and working for better public policy. She has worked on programs to assist inmates in reentering society and managing the negative stigmatism often associated with a criminal conviction, whether warranted or falsely accused. After her release, Lopez worked as an advocate under Governor

Jeb Bush John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. A member of the Bush family, Bush political family, he was an unsuccessful candidate for pre ...

, specializing in criminal justice reform. She also took up leadership roles with the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce. In August 2022, Lopez returned to elected office, defeating Alberto Perosch in the Republican primary election for the 113th district of the

. In November 2022, she defeated Alessandro D'Amico in the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

, winning 51 percent of the votes. As an elected official, Lopez has sponsored and passed numerous bills on behalf of the constituents of District 113. In the aftermath of the Surfside Condominium Collapse of 2021, residents of Miami-Dade County expressed great concerns over condominium safety. Lopez introduced and passed HB 1029, the My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot Program, which went into law on July 1, 2024.

Personal life

Lopez married Sylvester Lukis in 1994. Lopez's son, Donald Wolfe III, was the Chief of Staff for Miami City Mayor

Francis Suarez Francis Xavier Suarez ( ; born October 6, 1977) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the 43rd List of mayors of Miami, mayor of Miami since 2017. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he previousl ...

. Lopez owns and runs VLL Consulting, a Florida-based government and public affairs firm.

References

Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) Republican Party members of the Florida House of Representatives 21st-century American women politicians University of Notre Dame alumni Women state legislators in Florida Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in Florida 21st-century members of the Florida Legislature {{Florida-FLRepresentative-Republican-stub