Fla. Democrat Maxwell Frost becomes 1st Gen Z Congress member

Nov. 8 (UPI) -- The first member of Generation Z has won a seat in Congress.

Democrat Maxwell Alejandro Frost, 25, defeated Republican Calvin Wimbish for a Florida U.S. House seat Tuesday night, making Frost the youngest member to serve in Congress.

Frost beat Wimbish for Florida's 10th congressional district with 59% of the vote. The heavily Democratic Orlando-area district was up for grabs after Democratic Rep. Val Demings, who challenged Sen. Marco Rubio for the U.S. Senate race, gave up the seat.

Demings conceded to Rubio Tuesday night after Rubio won with 58% of the vote.

Frost will not only become the first Gen Z House member, he will also become the first Afro-Cuban member of Congress.

"WE WON!!! History was made tonight," Frost tweeted Tuesday night. "We made history for Floridians, for Gen Z, and for everyone who believes we deserve a better future. I am beyond thankful for the opportunity to represent my home in the United States Congress."

Born in 1997, Frost had just met requirements to run for a seat in the House. Lawmakers in the lower chamber must be at least 25 when they are sworn in. Those born between 1997 and 2012 are considered members of Generation Z.

Frost was adopted, did not finish college, does not come from wealth and has never held office, according to his website. Instead, he spent his time volunteering in the community and speaking out about abortion rights and gun control, while driving for Uber to make ends meet.

"I quit my job to do this. I drive Uber to pay my bills. It's a sacrifice to be honest," Frost told Politico in August. "But I'm doing it because I can't imagine myself not doing anything but fixing the problems we have right now."

Frost is an ACLU activist and was the national organizing director for March for Our Lives, a student-led demonstration in Washington to support gun reform legislation in the wake of the Parkland, Fla., school shooting in 2018.

"As a young man, I experienced police abuse firsthand and saw my community ravaged by gun violence," Frost wrote on his website. "And I've experienced how working people and people of color are unjustly marginalized and left behind in our society."