Victor Manuel Torres Jr. (born July 22, 1947) is a Democratic member of the Florida Senate who has represented the 25th district, encompassing Osceola County and southern

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

, since 2022. Previously, he served two terms in the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...

, representing parts of Orlando in Orange County from 2012 to 2016.

History

Torres was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, where he graduated from Harren High School in 1966. Following graduation, he enlisted in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

, serving for four years from 1966 to 1970. During his service, Torres was stationed in

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, and was awarded the Good Conduct Medal. Returning to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, Torres attended

John Jay College The John Jay College of Criminal Justice (John Jay) is a public college focused on criminal justice and located in New York City. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY). John Jay was founded as the only liberal arts co ...

, but did not graduate, and joined the New York City Transit Police, serving for twenty years before retiring as a detective. In 1993, he moved with his family to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, initially settling in Marion County, where he worked as a school bus driver and served on the Marion County Democratic Executive Committee. Torres moved to Orlando, and in 2010 was the field director for Amy Mercado, the Democratic nominee for the

in District 35.

Florida Legislature

House of Representatives

When the state's legislative districts were redrawn in 2012, Torres opted to run in the newly created 48th District, which includes parts of Orlando in

. Torres won the nomination of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

unopposed, and advanced to the general election, where he was also unopposed, winning his first term entirely uncontested. He was re-elected without opposition to his second term in 2014 without opposition. While serving in the legislature, Torres took a strong position against legislation proposed by

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

Heather Fitzenhagen that would allow people without criminal records to carry firearms without a permit during natural disasters, arguing that firearms in hurricane shelters had the potential to be dangerous and noting, "I hope that tragedy will not be a byproduct of our decision here today." Additionally, when

State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

Dwight Bullard Dwight Bullard (born February 4, 1977) is a Democratic politician and teacher from Florida. He served one term in the Florida State Senate, representing parts of South Florida from 2012 to 2016, and before that served two terms in the Florida H ...

, a proponent of raising the state's minimum wage, challenged lawmakers to live on the minimum wage for a week, Torres accepted the offer and did so.

Senate

Torres ran for the Florida Senate seat vacated when senator Darren Soto opted to run for

Florida's 9th Congressional District Florida's 9th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Florida. It stretches from eastern Orlando south-southeast to Yeehaw Junction. It also includes the cities of Kissimmee and St. Cloud. From 2003 to 2012, i ...

. Torres defeated Republican Peter Vivaldi in the general election, 56 to 44%. Torres' daughter, Amy Mercado, succeeded him in the House, making the two the first father and daughter to serve in the Florida Legislature at the same time.

References

External links

Florida Senate – Victor Manuel Torres Jr.Florida House of Representatives – Victor Manuel Torres Jr.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torres, Victor M. Jr. 1947 births Living people Puerto Rican people in Florida politics American politicians of Cuban descent Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives 21st-century American politicians United States Marines Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in Florida