Michelle Salzman
Michelle Salzman is a U.S. Army veteran and small-business owner from Pensacola who represents House District 1. She founded the Mental Health Task Force of Northwest Florida and chairs the House subcommittee covering housing, agriculture and tourism. She holds a master's degree in applied politics and policy from Florida State University.
Campaign finance: state and county candidates file with the Florida Division of Elections or the county Supervisor of Elections. Search contributions ↗
Sources last checked 2026-09-18. Report an error ↗
Positions on the major issues
Compare with opponents →Each entry describes what the candidate has said or done, and what they say they will do, in neutral terms with sources. The chip shows how that relates to the statement voters rate in the matching tool.
Taxes & spending Leans agree· stated position
Salzman says government should be held to a household-budget standard, root out waste and let Floridians keep more of what they earn.
Property taxes Strongly agrees· based on record
Salzman voted for the 2026 homestead property-tax amendment (HJR 1-F) and for HJR 203, which would have eliminated non-school property taxes on homesteads. In her Vote411 answers she said property taxes challenge the idea of truly owning a home.
"Even after you have paid off your home, you are still paying to keep it. For many Floridians, that challenges the very idea of truly owning their home."
Property insurance Leans disagree· stated position
On Vote411 Salzman said the state has made progress on insurance reform but more work remains, and she framed affordability solutions around reducing costs and encouraging competition.
"We've made progress on insurance reform, but there's much more work to do."
Housing affordability Leans agree· stated position
On Vote411 she backed scaling the Hometown Heroes down-payment program, converting surplus public land to housing, targeted infrastructure grants for workforce housing and faster local approvals.
Immigration Strongly agrees· based on record
Salzman voted for SB 2-C, the 2025 state immigration-enforcement package, and her campaign site lists securing the border as a priority.
Abortion Strongly disagrees· based on record
Salzman voted for SB 300, the 2023 six-week abortion law. In her 2026 Vote411 answer she said she has supported policies that protect life and support mothers and families.
"I have supported policies that protect life, provide support for mothers and families, and ensure that government remains accountable to the people it serves."
Guns Strongly disagrees· based on record
Salzman voted in 2025 and again in 2026 for House bills lowering the minimum age to buy rifles and shotguns from 21 to 18.
Education & school choice Strongly agrees· based on record
Salzman voted for HB 1 in 2023, which made state school-choice scholarships available to all K-12 students regardless of income.
Elections & voting Leans disagree· stated position
Asked on Vote411 about a documentary proof-of-citizenship requirement for voter registration, Salzman said verifying identity should not be seen as an impairment to voting and stressed election integrity.
"Verifying a person's identity when they exercise their most important civic right should not be viewed as an impairment to voting; it is about recognizing the importance of maintaining a trusted Republic."
Gender identity laws Strongly agrees· based on record
Voted for SB 254 (2023), the 2023 law barring gender-affirming medical treatment for minors and restricting it for adults.
Energy & utilities Leans disagree· based on record
Voted for CS/CS/HB 1645 (2024), the 2024 energy law that removed climate change as a priority of state energy policy, repealed several renewable-energy goals and grant programs, banned offshore wind turbines in state waters and eased regulation of natural-gas pipelines; a vote for it is coded as leaning against promoting renewable energy.
Veterans Strongly agrees· stated position
Her campaign site lists supporting veterans and protecting the military among her top priorities.
No public position found on 6 issues
We searched campaign sites, questionnaires, interviews, votes and official actions and did not find a clear stance on: Health care, Environment & water, Growth & development, Marijuana, Crime & policing, Trump administration. This is reported as unknown rather than guessed from party affiliation; these issues are excluded from this candidate's match score.
Other issues this candidate has raised
- Term limits and mental health — Salzman describes herself as an advocate for term limits at every level of government and founded the Mental Health Task Force of Northwest Florida.
Record: votes, actions and documented facts
- CS/HJR 1-F (2026 special session), the homestead property-tax amendment (Amendment 3): voted Yes
- CS/CS/HJR 203 (2026), proposal to eliminate non-school property taxes on homesteads: voted Yes
- SB 2-C (2025 special session), state immigration-enforcement package: voted Yes
- HB 1 (2023), universal school-choice vouchers: voted Yes
- SB 300 (2023), the six-week abortion law: voted Yes
- HB 543 (2023), permitless concealed carry: voted did not vote
- HB 759 (2025), lowering the long-gun purchase age from 21 to 18: voted Yes
- HB 133 (2026), lowering the long-gun purchase age from 21 to 18: voted Yes
- Voted for CS/HJR 1-F (2026), the June 2026 joint resolution that placed Amendment 3 on the ballot to raise the non-school homestead exemption to $250,000 by 2028 and let counties and cities exempt homesteads entirely; because the vote sent the question to voters rather than cutting taxes itself, a vote for it is coded as leaning toward sharply reducing homestead property taxes rather than as full agreement.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Voted for CS/CS/HB 1645 (2024), the 2024 energy law that removed climate change as a priority of state energy policy, repealed several renewable-energy goals and grant programs, banned offshore wind turbines in state waters and eased regulation of natural-gas pipelines; a vote for it is coded as leaning against promoting renewable energy.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Voted for CS/SB 102 (2023), the 2023 Live Local Act that put $711 million into state housing programs, required local governments to allow multifamily housing in commercial areas when at least 40 percent of units are affordable, and created property-tax exemptions for affordable developments; a vote for it is coded as leaning toward more government action on housing.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Voted for SB 2-C (2025), the February 2025 special-session immigration law that created a State Board of Immigration Enforcement, made entering Florida as an unauthorized immigrant a state crime and required local cooperation with federal detention.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Voted for SB 300 (2023), the 2023 law limiting most abortions to six weeks of pregnancy.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Voted for HB 1 (2023), the 2023 law that made every Florida student eligible for a state-funded scholarship usable at private schools or for home education.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Voted for SB 254 (2023), the 2023 law barring gender-affirming medical treatment for minors and restricting it for adults.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Voted for SB 7050 (2023), the 2023 elections law that raised penalties and shortened deadlines for third-party voter-registration groups and changed vote-by-mail and voter-roll procedures.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Voted for SB 2-A (Dec. 2022), the December 2022 property-insurance law that ended one-way attorney fees and assignment of benefits and created a state reinsurance program, a market-based approach; a vote for it is coded as leaning against more direct state intervention.Sources: Bill page · Roll-call vote
- Oct. 8, 2026: Took part with Sen. Rick Scott, U.S. Rep. Jimmy Patronis, Rep. Alex Andrade and Escambia County officials in a downtown Pensacola briefing on preparations for Hurricane Isaias.
- Oct. 15, 2026: Joined Lt. Gov. Jay Collins at a storm-supply distribution site in Pace; told the Santa Rosa Press Gazette she expected the governor's request for a federal major-disaster declaration within a day or two and described wind damage in north Santa Rosa County as unprecedented. (Florida's request was submitted the evening of Oct. 15.)
- Oct. 16, 2026: Appeared with Gov. Ron DeSantis at a Milton press conference on Isaias recovery, and her office announced a pet-food distribution in Pensacola for families recovering from the storm.