Candidate Profile: José Stoute — Florida Senate District 40

Why are you running to represent this district?

I am running because too many people in South Florida are working hard and still struggling to afford housing, insurance, health care, child care and everyday necessities. After a career as a physician, military officer, educator and health care leader, I want to bring that same commitment to public service to the Florida Senate and work on practical solutions that make Florida work for everyone. What are the three most important issues currently facing residents of the district?

The three most important issues facing District 40 are affordability, health care and immigration.

Families are being squeezed by rising rent, property insurance, transportation, child care and food costs. We need affordable access to quality health care and an immigration system that is secure, orderly, humane and respectful of people who are working and contributing to our communities.

I also believe politics should not interfere with classrooms or medical decisions. As an infectious-disease physician, I strongly oppose efforts to diminish vaccine mandates for schoolchildren or expand vaccination exemptions.

What experience, accomplishments or qualifications best prepare you to serve?

My career has been built around service, leadership and solving difficult problems. More than four decades as an infectious-disease physician have shown me the challenges facing patients and health care professionals.

Twenty years in the U.S. Army taught me leadership, adaptability and teamwork, while being a small-business owner taught me the realities of meeting payroll and controlling costs.

What would be your top legislative priority? My first priority will be addressing Florida’s affordability crisis. Housing, property insurance, transportation, child care, health care and everyday expenses are consuming too much of working families’ incomes.

I will focus on practical measures that reduce those costs and help working people, seniors and young families continue living in South Florida.

How would you address affordability, including housing, insurance, utilities, child care and everyday living expenses? The government in Tallahassee has elected to ignore the affordability crisis Floridians live with every day. I will support policies that expand affordable workforce housing, encourage multifamily development and adaptive reuse of vacant commercial properties and protect responsible renters and property owners.

I will advocate for expanded mass transit serving South Dade, increased child-care subsidies and stronger competition and consumer protections in property insurance.

Florida should also pursue a diverse energy portfolio, including solar and nuclear power, while ensuring growth is supported by adequate infrastructure.

How would you approach growth, transportation, infrastructure, environmental protection and residents’ quality of life?

Growth is necessary, but it must be accompanied by proportional infrastructure support, including roads, water supplies, electricity, schools, police, emergency medical services and health care.

There must also be environmental protections. I support home rule so communities have the ability to decide their rate of growth.

What changes would you like to see in Florida’s education system?

Teachers in Florida are underpaid, and public schools are losing great educators. I believe curriculum decisions should be left to local educators and parents rather than Tallahassee.

I will fight for teacher salaries on par with the national average, less politics in the classroom and the funding and resources public schools need to succeed.

How would you remain accessible and accountable to residents and advocate for the district in Tallahassee?

Accessibility should not end on Election Day.

I will maintain an active website and constituent-services operation, respond to emails and calls and hold regular town halls and community meetings throughout South Dade and the Florida Keys.

I also want residents to know not only how I vote, but why, through regular communication about legislation and district priorities.

What distinguishes you from the other candidates seeking this office?

What distinguishes me is a lifetime of service combined with experience in medicine, the military, education, leadership and small business.

I have cared for patients, led soldiers and health care professionals, taught future physicians, conducted medical research and managed complex organizations.

Those experiences taught me to listen, build teams and focus on accomplishing the mission rather than winning political arguments.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about how you would serve and work with others?

I am running as a Democrat, but if elected, I will be a senator for everyone in District 40.

I will represent Democrats, Republicans, independents and people with no political affiliation. I will work with people from any party, listen with civility and respect and focus on practical solutions and the best interests of the people of Florida