Marco Rubio’s mother, Oriales Rubio, has died
Oria and Marco Rubio, via Instagram.

Screen Shot 2019-09-30 at 12.33.57 PM
She frequently could be seen at campaign events supporting her son.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio’s mother, Oriales, has died at 88, he confirmed on Instagram.

“My mother Oria Rubio returned to be with the Lord on Friday night,” Rubio wrote. “God blessed her with almost 89 years of life filled with love. And with a peaceful death surrounded by those who loved her.

“The love she had for her children [is] but a glimpse of the even greater love God has for His. And the joy we shared in this life foreshadow[s] the even greater joy we will share in the next. We will live together again. Under a new heaven & in a new earth. God himself will live among us. And there will be ‘no more death or mourning, wailing or pain.’ ”

From humble immigrant beginnings, Rubio’s parents raised a future Florida Speaker of the House, U.S. Senator and Presidential hopeful; Rubio ran for President in 2016 but lost the GOP nomination to now-President Donald Trump.

Oriales Rubio grew up living with eight other people in a one-room home in Cuba, according to a 2013 profile in Time.

She and husband, Mario Rubio, moved to the United States in 1959, and she became a citizen in 1975, about four years after Marco Rubio’s birth in Miami.

The story of Mario and Oriales’ experience working in the U.S. in the service industry provided a historical backdrop to Rubio’s political rise and was spotlighted in a presidential campaign ad.

Rubio’s father died of cancer in 2010.

The news of Oriales Rubio’s death drew bipartisan expressions of support for the Republican Senator.

“Saddened to hear of the passing of Senator @marcorubio’s mother Oriales,” tweeted Gov. Ron DeSantis, who said he and Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis “send our prayers and well wishes to Marco and his entire family during this difficult time.”

Democratic state Sen. Shevrin Jones, who has worked recently with Rubio on Bahamas relief, also tweeted support.

“Praying that God will wrap his loving arms around Senator @marcorubio and his entire family during their time of bereavement,” Jones wrote. “So sorry for the loss of your mother, Senator.”

Rubio is a regular disseminator of passages from Scripture via his Twitter feed. He addressed the subject of death in a Saturday post, the day after his mother’s passing.

He paraphrased 1 Corinthians 15:21, and wrote, “For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead came also through a human being. For just as in Adam all die, so too in Christ shall all be brought to life.”

Jacob Ogles

Jacob Ogles has covered politics in Florida since 2000 for regional outlets including SRQ Magazine in Sarasota, The News-Press in Fort Myers and The Daily Commercial in Leesburg. His work has appeared nationally in The Advocate, Wired and other publications. Events like SRQ’s Where The Votes Are workshops made Ogles one of Southwest Florida’s most respected political analysts, and outlets like WWSB ABC 7 and WSRQ Sarasota have featured his insights. He can be reached at [email protected].



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