Steele resigns Pasco seat in state House after move to Hillsborough for congressional run
By Rick Mayer
August 10, 2026 at 11:17 AM EDT
Rep. Kevin Steele sent a resignation letter to House Speaker Daniel Perez after he posted a photo on social media of him voting at a Tampa library. Florida law requires lawmakers live in their districts.
State Rep. Kevin Steele, who is running for Congress in Hillsborough County, has resigned from the state House, where he had been representing Pasco County.
Steele, first elected to the Legislature out of Dade City in 2022, sent a letter to House Speaker Daniel Perez on Wednesday, two days after he posted a photo on social media of him voting at a Tampa library.
https://twitter.com/KevinSteeleFL/status/2084412830497787956
Steele’s state House District 55 doesn’t cover congressional District 14, where he recently moved. State law requires lawmakers to live in their districts.
“It has been an honor to work with you and Governor DeSantis to enact the America First agenda here in Florida and I look forward to working with President Trump to bring Florida’s successes to the rest of America,” Steele wrote in his resignation letter, according to News Service of Florida.
As of Monday, the state House website lists Steele as the District 55 representative, but a page listing members has removed his photo and labels the seat as “pending election.”
WUSF VOTER GUIDE: See where the candidates stand on the issues
Steele is among a group of Republicans battling for the nomination to face incumbent District 14 Rep. Kathy Castor in November. Others in the primary are former state Rep. Mike Beltran, Michael Marcel, John Peters, Robert Rochford, Ergin Tek, Gavriel Soriano and Bea Valenti.
The district shifted when the Legislature passed new congressional maps this year, removing part of Pinellas County from the district and shifting it east to take in more rural areas of Hillsborough.
Castor, who has represented the Tampa area in Congress since 2007, was elected to the District 14 seat after redistricting in 2013.
Steele, first elected to the Legislature out of Dade City in 2022, sent a letter to House Speaker Daniel Perez on Wednesday, two days after he posted a photo on social media of him voting at a Tampa library.
https://twitter.com/KevinSteeleFL/status/2084412830497787956
Steele’s state House District 55 doesn’t cover congressional District 14, where he recently moved. State law requires lawmakers to live in their districts.
“It has been an honor to work with you and Governor DeSantis to enact the America First agenda here in Florida and I look forward to working with President Trump to bring Florida’s successes to the rest of America,” Steele wrote in his resignation letter, according to News Service of Florida.
As of Monday, the state House website lists Steele as the District 55 representative, but a page listing members has removed his photo and labels the seat as “pending election.”
WUSF VOTER GUIDE: See where the candidates stand on the issues
Steele is among a group of Republicans battling for the nomination to face incumbent District 14 Rep. Kathy Castor in November. Others in the primary are former state Rep. Mike Beltran, Michael Marcel, John Peters, Robert Rochford, Ergin Tek, Gavriel Soriano and Bea Valenti.
The district shifted when the Legislature passed new congressional maps this year, removing part of Pinellas County from the district and shifting it east to take in more rural areas of Hillsborough.
Castor, who has represented the Tampa area in Congress since 2007, was elected to the District 14 seat after redistricting in 2013.