Gaetz, Matt, 1982-

Matthew Louis Gaetz II (born May 7, 1982) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the U.S. representative for Florida's 1st congressional district since 2017. A Republican, he became one of the foremost congressional allies of President Donald Trump. The son of prominent Florida politician Don Gaetz, Gaetz was raised in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. After graduating from the William & Mary Law School, he briefly worked in private practice before running for state representative. He served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2010 until 2016, and received national attention for defending Florida's controversial "stand-your-ground law" during the aftermath of the killing of Trayvon Martin in 2012. In 2016, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and was reelected in 2018 and 2020. In late 2020, the Department of Justice opened an investigation into allegations that Gaetz had a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl in violation of federal sex trafficking laws, which Gaetz denied. In April 2021, the House Ethics Committee also announced an investigation.