Tampa City Council member Luis Viera has filed to run for House District 67 to replace House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell, who is facing term limits in 2026.

Viera’s filing officially puts to bed rumors that he could run for Tampa Mayor in 2027, with incumbent Mayor Jane Castor unable to seek re-election due to term limits. Viera had previously said he would not run for Mayor, but didn’t offer specifics on his next political steps.

“As a public servant and lifelong Tampa resident, I know how strong communities are built. And as the son of refugees, I know how futures are made,” Viera said. “I’m running to invest in our public schools, protect civil rights, support workers, and ensure dignity and respect for all Floridians — no matter their background.”

Viera, a Tampa lawyer and a Democrat, has served on the Tampa City Council since 2019. He’s been active in the community for far longer, with service on the Hillsborough County Bar Association Diversity Committee and the Tampa Civil Service Board.

As a City Council member, Viera has helped secure funding for three new fire stations in New Tampa and north Tampa, and he was a champion for the city’s apprenticeship ordinance to help young people enter skilled trades. He has also fought diligently for expanded access to disability-inclusive recreational spaces, such as the All Abilities New Tampa Park.

Viera has also led efforts to expand the New Tampa Recreation Center and other north Tampa facilities, and he helped secure $3.2 million in housing assistance for families impacted by recent hurricanes.

“For eight years, I have fought to deliver real progress for New and North Tampa,” Viera said. “Whether it was improving emergency response times, securing disaster relief, or standing up for our most vulnerable communities, I have never backed down from a fight. I’m ready to bring that same dedication and energy to the Florida State House.”

Viera is also the founder and former President of Lawyers Autism Awareness Foundation, and serves on the Board for Tampa Bay Best Buddies, a group that advocates for and helps individuals with special needs and developmental disabilities, an issue for which Viera has been a vocal advocate himself.

“People want to believe in their government but don’t feel it fights for them. That’s especially true for our working class, middle class, and those striving to get ahead. Too many Floridians feel they don’t have a voice. Politics is about changing that. We need to remember how futures are made in Florida again,” Viera said.

Viera is already set up for a Primary. He’s the second Democrat to enter the race, joining Air Force veteran William Atkins, who joined the race in early February.

A Democrat is favored to hold the seat. Nearly 38% of the electorate are registered Democrats, compared to just 27% who are Republicans, according to the most recent L2 voter data.

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The House State Administration Budget Subcommittee is scrutinizing money spent on the comings and goings of Lottery Secretary John Davis.

The panel reviewed itemized travel costs of more than $50,000 between January 2021 and November 2024. Many of the trips were personal appearances, site visits and speaking gigs, though conference travel took him to Paris last October.

Chair Vicki Lopez, who wondered last week how “the Department in the state of Florida benefit by having the secretary in Paris away from day-to-day operations for so long,” contextualized the data in terms of the previous committee meeting, in which they wondered where Davis lived.

“Reimbursements are provided for planes, trains and automobiles. The Secretary’s total travel from January of 2021 through November of 2024 was over $50,000,” Lopez said.

“We’ve also provided a document for the travel that includes Orlando as part of the destination. These trips alone cost $27,840. Many of the destinations are simply Orlando and the transportation used is his personal vehicle, for which he is getting reimbursed. While we don’t know the originating city, it appears to indicate that the secretary is being reimbursed to commute home from Tallahassee to Orlando.”

The data leaves further open questions.

“The Secretary told us last week he would get his travel information back to us. We look forward to that response and hope it includes information regarding all the travel in this document,” Lopez added.

“I also want to note that we are not able to find any reimbursements made after November of 2024. We don’t know if he stopped getting reimbursed for travel, stopped traveling, or if this is a delay in information being posted. So I think the subcommittee would like to know any additional travel information for the last four months as well.”

As 12 News reported last week, lawmakers in the same committee scrutinized members of a Department of Management Services “enterprise cybersecurity data” group getting more than $56,000 in travel expenses. It was revealed then that Chief Data Officer Edward Rhyne lives out of state, and more than $40,000 was spent on his travel.

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