This story is part of a statewide partnership of more than 30 nonpartisan newsrooms and universities working to help Florida voters make informed decisions in the 2026 elections. Learn more about the Florida Elections Reporting Partnership at floridaelections.org.

Amanda Marie Green is no stranger to the importance of investment, especially growing up in what she calls a patriotic family.

“I come from a really big, loving family — like really big family, being surrounded by people who were invested in me, kind of fulfilling the potential that I had,” Green says. “That’s something that I think is really important with kids is to have adults that are invested in them.”

Her family is a focal point of her campaign for Florida’s second congressional district. Green gave birth to her baby boy while campaigning earlier this year. Now, she says she wants to leave behind a country where her child can be proud to grow up.

“What’s driving me as well right now is I have a nine-month-old. I delivered him on the campaign trail, and he deserves a free and fair America,” Green says. “He deserves a strong economy, and that’s what his generation deserves. And so I’m running. I’m running for Congress to make sure that we can kind of get back on track as a country.”

Green attended Florida State University for her undergraduate and graduate studies, focusing on international affairs, emergency management, public administration and economics.

She worked for the largest implementing partner for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) for the past decade as an operations director and pricing expert. Now, she looks to bring that expertise to Congress.

“The call to service for specifically running for Congress was realizing just how broken our system was, that an unelected billionaire could buy the keys to dismantle an agency because he had a personal vendetta with it,” Green says. “Unelected people should not be able to impact our institutions like that, and that’s what we’re seeing right now because of the corruption in Congress and in our government.”

She is referring to entrepreneur Elon Musk, who was appointed by President Donald Trump to lead the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) effort to dismantle USAID last year.

One of Green’s priorities is working toward congressional term limits and removing the ability for members of Congress to individually own and trade stocks while in office.

“If we can elect a Congress that is dedicated to getting the dark money out of politics and really going after the insurers who are profiteering on the American people and on the increased cost of living, then we can make sure that people are put over profits again,” Green says.

Green says she would put a focus economically throughout the second district on the farming side. As such, she plans to run to be a part of the Agricultural Committee if elected.

“But also if you look at economically, for example, timber farmers or the agriculture sector, a lot of our farmers are the borders between the developed areas and our forests, whether they’re state or national parks,” Green says. “Our farmers … are a huge driver of both income and revenue for north Florida, and this is why I’ve pledged to sit on the Agriculture Committee.”

Green also recognizes the vast amount of tourism in the area, and looks to prioritize land protection throughout the region.

Another major issue is health care. Green says the focus needs to be on building clinics closer to rural residents instead of relying on medical care from Bay and Leon counties to support everything in between.

She also wants to focus on affordability.

“I talk to folks every single day who are working full time, who are having a hard time putting food on the table, making their mortgage, making their property insurance payments, and affording their health insurance premiums,” Green says. “Congress is doing nothing because a lot of them are profiting from it. And so if we weed out the corruption in Congress, then we can actually get to a place where Congress is addressing the cost of living crisis.”

Green says a way to combat high fuel prices is to push back on the overseas conflict with Iran.

“Gas prices specifically fluctuate the way they are because of poor planning and a terrible insight, frankly, into what a war with Iran would mean.”

Green says when she is not campaigning or taking care of her almost 1-year-old, you can find her in the kitchen, probably making a tart that is a fall favorite in her household.

“That’s a rosemary pine nuts salty tart that is just incredible,” Green says. “I make like four or five of those every fall, and I end up giving them away as presents to people, and then they get requested. So I think this year I might end up having to make like eight or nine.”

Amanda Marie Green is facing Republican nominee Austin Rogers.

Randall Vuxta of WFSU Public Media/ the Rural News Service is a graduate from the University of Central Florida with a focus on narrative first journalism. With eight years of experience covering the Orlando area, Randall brings an experienced eye to the Rural News Service team. Whether it’s covering a local trivia league or scrambling during a spontaneous bus fire, Randall makes sure to cover stories the community cares to hear. Randall lives by a mantra: everyone has a story, go out and find it!