Sun Mar 09 00:20:00 UTC 2025: ## Former Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart Dies at 70
**Key Biscayne, FL** – Lincoln Diaz-Balart, a prominent Florida Republican and staunch anti-communist who served 18 years in the US House of Representatives, passed away Monday at his home in Key Biscayne at the age of 70. His death, due to cancer, was announced by his brothers, Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart and MSNBC/NBC News anchor José Diaz-Balart.
A member of a prominent Cuban political family, Diaz-Balart became a powerful voice in Congress, particularly during a period of significant Cuban-American influence on US policy. Representing a heavily Cuban-American Miami district, he was a forceful advocate for a free Cuba, his commitment so strong that he was often asked if he aspired to Cuban office.
His legacy includes a key role in shaping US-Cuba relations. He was arrested in 1995 protesting President Clinton’s policy of engagement with Cuba and later played a crucial role in drafting the Helms-Burton Act of 1996, which solidified the US trade embargo against Cuba. While the Act’s effectiveness remains debated, it cemented the embargo into law, requiring Congressional approval for any future lifting.
First Piper 