Frederica S. Wilson

Background

Frederica Patricia Wilson (née Smith, November 5, 1942) is an American politician who has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since 2011, representing Florida's 24th congressional district. Located in South Florida, Wilson's congressional district, numbered 17th during her first term, covers a large swath of eastern Miami-Dade County. The district contains most of Miami's majority-black precincts. Wilson gained national attention in 2012 for her comments on the death of Trayvon Martin. In May 2026, Wilson announced her retirement.

Wilson is a member of the Democratic Party. The seat to which she was elected became available when the incumbent, Kendrick Meek, ran for a seat in the Senate in 2010.

Wilson is known for her large and colorful hats, of which she owns several hundred. She has gone through efforts to get Congress to lift its ban on head coverings during House sessions, which dates to 1837.

Source: Wikipedia, "Frederica Wilson" (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederica_Wilson), text available under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Excerpt of the article's lead section; pronunciation guides and citation markers removed.

Sourced summary

[2023-07-26] Floor speech (extensions): [Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 129 (Wednesday, July 26, 2023)] govinfo.gov

[2022-07-13] Floor speech (extensions): [Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 115 (Wednesday, July 13, 2022)] govinfo.gov

[2022-11-10] Floor speech (extensions): [Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 174 (Thursday, November 10, 2022)] govinfo.gov