Candidate Kevin Chambliss, Florida House District 117

State Rep. Kevin Chambliss, a Homestead Democrat, is asking voters to return him to the Florida House for District 117 in the general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. The district takes in parts of Homestead, Florida City, Cutler Bay and Palmetto Bay. His only opponent on the ballot is Republican Miguel Granda. Chambliss has held the seat since November 2020, and this would be his fourth term.

At a Glance

Office: Florida State Representative
District: House District 117, parts of Cutler Bay, Florida City, Homestead and Palmetto Bay
Party: Democratic (DEM)
Incumbent: Yes, first elected in 2020
Opponent on the ballot: Miguel Granda (REP)
Campaign website: None verified. The Ballot Brief found no campaign site as of Sept. 11, 2026.

Background

Chambliss is a Mississippi native. Wikipedia says he was born in Columbus, Mississippi, in 1981 and holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Jackson State University. The South Dade News Leader’s 2020 profile said he got into politics as a graduate student at Northern Illinois University. There he was vice president of the NIU College Democrats, president of the Young Democrats of DeKalb County and a member of the campus NAACP executive board. The same profile said he was a youth pastor at Covenant Missionary Baptist Church in Florida City. The Ballot Brief says he moved to Florida in 2010 and lives in Homestead.

Before he ran, Chambliss worked on campaigns and in congressional offices. The News Leader reported that he was a field organizer and later South Dade director for Joe Garcia. It also said he served as community liaison in South Dade for U.S. Reps. Carlos Curbelo, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell and Donna Shalala. Wikipedia also lists work as a Florida Democratic Party field organizer. He is married to Leah Chambliss, and they have four children.

In December 2022, House colleagues from both parties elected him vice chair of the Miami-Dade County Legislative Delegation, the News Leader reported. In January 2024 the bipartisan Future Caucus named him one of its first Healthcare Innovation Fellows, a group focused on maternal and child health, Florida Politics reported. He co-chairs the caucus’s Florida chapter with Republican Sen. Alexis Calatayud. In January 2025, House Democrats made him ranking member on two subcommittees: Economic Infrastructure, and Insurance & Banking, Florida Politics reported.

In Their Own Words

In 2021 Chambliss argued on the House floor for his bill protecting tips to Crime Stoppers. He cited the 2017 killing of a 2-year-old in Goulds:

“The reason is no one feels safe enough to come forward and give law enforcement information.”

Kevin Chambliss, House floor remarks quoted in the South Dade News Leader, April 23, 2021

In 2026 he opposed a bill barring local governments from adopting climate policies:

“The Panhandle isn’t like Orlando, and Miami-Dade is a whole country of its own. That’s why it’s important to let the local municipalities, if they so choose, create these kinds of initiatives.”

Kevin Chambliss, quoted by Fresh Take Florida in Florida Politics, April 23, 2026

On his Future Caucus fellowship, he described his approach in the House:

“I have dedicated myself to creating bipartisan coalitions to tackle Florida’s most pressing issues”

Kevin Chambliss, statement quoted by Florida Politics, Jan. 17, 2024

After he was elected vice chair of the county delegation:

“I look forward to closely working with my colleagues, both Democrat and Republican”

Kevin Chambliss, quoted in the South Dade News Leader, Dec. 2, 2022

Record and Priorities

Legislation

Crime Stoppers tips (HB 363, 2021): His first-year bill gave limited legal protection to information provided to Crime Stoppers organizations. It made trying to obtain that protected information a third-degree felony and shielded Crime Stoppers staff and volunteers from certain civil liability. It passed the House 116-0 and was signed into law. The News Leader reported that the Florida Association of Crime Stoppers named him its Florida Representative of the Year.
Agriculture records (HB 7007, 2021): This bill, which also passed the House, let the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services share certain exempt investigative records with other state or federal regulators, the News Leader reported.
Dropout prevention (HB 125): In 2021 he filed a bill to require students to stay in school until 18 instead of 16, paired with more job-training alternatives, the News Leader reported. We did not find a record of the bill becoming law.

Recent votes and positions

Housing: During the 2026 debate on the third Live Local Act update, he said he appreciated the House version, Florida Politics reported. He pointed in particular to the provision letting religious institutions offer their land for housing. The House passed that bill 98-4.
Local climate policy: He spoke against the 2026 bill barring local carbon-reduction policies. He defended local programs such as the City of Miami’s carbon-neutral plan. In response to criticism of electric buses, he said gas buses break down too.
Property tax amendment: In August 2026 he was one of the House Democrats who joined an advisory committee opposing Amendment 3, the proposed property tax constitutional amendment on the 2026 ballot.

Money for district projects

Chambliss has sponsored state funding requests for South Dade cities, often with Republican senators.

In 2024 he and Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez presented Florida City with $250,000 for a police mobile command center, according to a release published by the News Leader.
In July 2026 he joined Sens. Rodriguez and Calatayud and Rep. Jim Mooney in presenting Homestead with $3 million for water-system and bridge upgrades.
Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed several of his 2026 requests, Florida Politics reported. They included $2 million for water mains along Krome Avenue in Homestead and $2 million for a new drinking-water storage tank at the Wittkop Park treatment plant. The governor also vetoed $200,000 for a faith-based senior meals program that Chambliss and Calatayud had requested.

Outside Tallahassee, he has held community events in the district. One was an August 2026 “Read with the Rep + Backpack Drive” at the Naranja Branch Library in Homestead, Florida Politics noted.

About the District

House District 117 covers an inland strip of southern Miami-Dade County, according to Florida Politics, including parts of Cutler Bay, Florida City, Homestead and Palmetto Bay. As of April 2026, 39% of its voters were registered Democrats, 29% Republicans and 32% belonged to a minor party or none. Voters were 59% Hispanic, 26% African American and 8% white. Granda’s campaign has said the district has shifted toward Republicans and unaffiliated voters. Because district lines do not follow city limits, voters should check their sample ballot to confirm this race appears on it.

What This Office Does

State representatives write and vote on Florida law and the state budget. They also sponsor requests for local projects, which the governor can veto line by line. House members serve two-year terms, so this seat is on the ballot every even-numbered year. Recent House decisions affecting this part of South Dade include the Live Local Act’s housing rules, property insurance law, and state money for water systems in Homestead and Florida City.

The Race

Chambliss faces one opponent:

Miguel Granda (REP), 34, has worked since 2020 as an aide to Republican state Rep. David Borrero of Hialeah. He is president of the Miami-Dade Young Republicans and lists financial relief, public safety and schools as his priorities.

Neither party had a primary for this seat on Miami-Dade’s Aug. 18, 2026 primary ballot. The South Dade News Leader’s Aug. 21 primary roundup covered the nearby House District 118 primary and other South Dade contests.

Chambliss first won the seat in 2020, succeeding Kionne McGhee. He took a three-way Democratic primary with 37.6% of the vote and faced no Republican in November, according to Ballotpedia. He was re-elected without opposition in 2022. In 2024 he beat Republican Beatrice Slawson 52.9% (32,347 votes) to 47.1% (28,823). Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava endorsed him in May 2026, calling him “a leader who listens, collaborates, and delivers.” The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee listed his seat among those it plans to defend. Before Richard Lamondin moved to the state Senate race, Chambliss had endorsed Lamondin’s congressional campaign in January 2026.

How to Vote

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and voters must go to their assigned precinct. NBC6 reported that early voting in Miami-Dade runs from Oct. 19 through Nov. 1. Under the county’s rules, a vote-by-mail ballot must be requested by 5 p.m. on the 12th day before the election, which is Thursday, Oct. 22. Mail ballots must reach the Supervisor of Elections by 7 p.m. on Election Day. You can check your registration, sample ballot, polling place and early voting sites through the Miami-Dade Elections Department.

Community Leadership Alliance is nonpartisan and does not endorse candidates. This profile is based on public records, candidate statements and news coverage, including the South Dade News Leader. Candidates who wish to submit corrections may contact us through our Contact page.