Jesse Scheckner
Those wondering what’s next on the political horizon for former state Sen. Lauren Book didn’t have to wait long to find out. She just filed paperwork to run for Senate District 37, where she hopes to succeed Jason Pizzo, her successor as Senate Democratic Leader.
The seat won’t be up for grabs until 2028 — unless Pizzo follows through on a potential Governor’s bid in 2026 for which many consider him a strong Democratic contender. In that case, the seat would open up two years early.
Book is the first to file for SD 37, a Democratic-leaning district covering South Florida’s coast from Sunny Isles Beach in Miami-Dade to Deerfield Beach in Broward County.
“Quite simply, my work is not done,” Book said in a statement to Florida Politics.
“As someone who has dedicated my career to advocating for women’s rights, expanding access to healthcare, protecting our children, keeping our communities safe, and fighting for solutions to Florida’s skyrocketing home insurance costs, I am committed to continuing this important work for Broward County, Miami-Dade County, and the State of Florida.”
The founder and CEO of Lauren’s Kids, a nonprofit focused on educating and empowering parents and kids to prevent childhood sexual abuse, Book ran unopposed to win the Senate District 35 seat in 2016. She reached term limits in November after serving two consecutive four-year terms.
During her tenure in Tallahassee, Book proved effective in passing compassionate but tough-on-crime legislation. This year, she passed measures to speed protective actions for existing or potential domestic abuse survivors and hike penalties for digital voyeurism.
Other legislative successes included laws to ease attendance at child dependency hearings, crack down on drag racing, limit the use of physical restraints on students and increase punishment for so-called “revenge porn” and sexually explicit deepfakes.
Book’s cross-aisle policymaking efforts also helped to pass Florida’s historic gun safety law in the aftermath of the 2018 Parkland massacre, expanding Medicaid twice for new moms and babies, funding mental health services in schools and strengthening access to mental health care for first responders.
She is also a founding Reproductive Freedom Collective of Broward County member, and joined Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried in protesting Florida’s six-week abortion ban ahead of the measure’s passage last year.
Book’s party peers elected her Senate Democratic Leader in April 2021. She led the caucus until this month, when Pizzo took the proverbial baton.
Book was born in Hollywood and grew up in Aventura. She now lives in Davie and has headquartered Lauren’s Kids in SD 37 since she founded the organization in 2007. She said residents of the district and across Florida want “strong, proven leadership” focused less on divisive culture wars and more on delivering results that improve their day-to-day lives.
“Residents deserve bipartisan solutions to the real problems our communities face, and as one of the most effective Democratic members of the Florida Senate in recent history, I have a proven track record of working across the aisle to achieve meaningful results,” she said. “I have a lifelong connection to this community and a clear understanding of the issues that matter most to its residents.”
