Mucarsel-Powell, Debbie, 1971-

<p>Debbie Jessika Mucarsel-Powell (born January 18, 1971) is an American politician and academic administrator who served as a U.S. Representative for Florida's 26th congressional district from 2019 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, her district covered the western part of Miami-Dade County, including Homestead, as well as the Florida Keys. Mucarsel-Powell was the first Ecuadorian American and first South American-born immigrant to serve as a member of the U.S. House and the U.S. Congress.</p>

<p>Murcarsel-Powell was defeated in her 2020 re-election bid by Miami-Dade County mayor Carlos Giménez.</p>

<p>Mucarsel-Powell was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, and raised in Miami. the daughter of Imelda Gil and Guido Mucarsel Yunes. Mucarsel-Powell immigrated to the United States when she was 14 years old, with her mother and three older sisters. She began working in a doughnut shop and continued to work to help support her family, who shared a one bedroom apartment.</p>

MUCARSEL-POWELL, Debbie, a Representative from Florida; born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, January 18, 1971; graduated from Pomona Catholic High School, Pomona, Calif., 1988; B.S., Pitzer College, Claremont, Calif., 1992; M.A., Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, Calif., 1996; consultant; faculty, Florida International University, Miami, Fla., 2003-2011; elected as a Democrat to the One Hundred Sixteenth Congress (January 3, 2019-January 3, 2021); unsuccessful candidate for reelection to the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress in 2020.