Florida → House → District 38
The Florida House directory lists David Smith (R) for the 2024–26 term and gives the county coverage as Part of Seminole.
District map · 2022 House plan
¶ Geography and communities
The 2022 redistricting cycle repositioned House District 38 as an east-west suburban belt across southern Seminole County bordering Orange County to the south.
- Municipalities Included (Full or Partial):
- City of Casselberry: Fully anchored within the district core.
- City of Altamonte Springs: Significant portions, primarily the central and eastern segments.
- City of Winter Springs: Partial municipal coverage (southern and western sections).
- City of Winter Park: Small northern suburban portions extending across the Orange/Seminole county line.
- Census-Designated Places (CDPs) & Unincorporated Areas:
- Fern Park: Dense unincorporated suburban enclave between Casselberry, Maitland, and Altamonte Springs.
- Key Transportation & Transit Corridors:
- Interstate 4 (I-4): Major north-south regional spine traversing the western section through Altamonte Springs.
- U.S. Highway 17-92 (Orlando Avenue): Commercial arterial linking Fern Park, Casselberry, and Longwood.
- State Road 436 (Semoran Boulevard): High-density east-west commercial and commuter transit corridor.
- State Road 434 (Forest City Road / Central Florida Parkway): Connecting Altamonte Springs, Longwood, and Winter Springs.
- SunRail Commuter Rail Corridor: North-south rail line serving adjacent hubs like the Altamonte Springs SunRail station.
¶ Population and electorate
(Note: Excludes broad county-wide approximations; based on mapped district composition reports and redistricting profiles.)
- Total Target Population: Approximately 175,000–180,000 residents (standard target population for Florida single-member state house districts post-2020 reapportionment).
- Demographic Composition:
- Racial / Ethnic Composition: Predominantly non-Hispanic White, with a rapidly growing Hispanic/Latino population concentrated heavily along the SR 436 and Casselberry/Fern Park corridors. Black/African American and Hispanic voters together constitute an estimated 29% of the registered voting electorate. Facebook
- Age Cohort Distribution: Significant suburban family composition, with voters under the age of 42 (Millennials and Generation Z) making up approximately 41% of the registered voting population. Facebook
- Housing & Socioeconomic Character:
- Mixed suburban landscape ranging from mature post-war single-family developments and dense multifamily apartment complexes in Fern Park and Casselberry to master-planned residential communities in Winter Springs.
- Significant commuter workforce tied to the Greater Orlando metropolitan economy, UCF/Research Park, and corporate office parks in Maitland and Lake Mary.
¶ Elections and political context
District 38 is historically classified as one of Central Florida's premier suburban "swing" seats, featuring a slight Democratic voter registration edge balanced by high-turnout conservative suburban voting blocs. Facebook
- Partisan Index: Highly competitive toss-up / battleground district.
- Historical Election Results (Post-2022 Redistricting):
- 2024 General Election:
- David Smith (R - Incumbent): 50.4% (44,972 votes)
- Sarah Henry (D - Challenger): 49.6% (44,302 votes)
- Margin: 670 votes (+0.8% R hold)
- 2022 General Election:
- David Smith (R): 52.3% (34,309 votes)
- Sarah Henry (D): 47.7% (31,290 votes)
- Margin: 3,019 votes (+4.6% R hold) Facebook
- 2022 Republican Primary:
- David Smith: 66.4%
- Drake Wuertz: 24.4%
- Patrick Weingart: 9.2%
¶ Economic and civic anchors
- Healthcare Infrastructure:
- AdventHealth Altamonte Springs: 390+ bed acute-care regional hospital facility anchoring the SR 436 corridor and healthcare supply chain in southern Seminole.
- Higher Education & Workforce Training:
- Seminole State College of Florida (Altamonte Springs Campus): Specializing in healthcare simulation, nursing degrees, and workforce development adjacent to the healthcare corridor.
- Commercial Hubs & Retail Power Centers:
- Altamonte Mall: Major super-regional enclosed shopping center and commercial tax base anchor at SR 436 and I-4.
- Casselberry Commons & Oxford Square: Key retail and service employment centers along the US 17-92 commercial belt.
- Industrial & Technology Connections:
- Proximity to the Central Florida Research Park / Modeling, Simulation, and Training (MS&T) cluster in East Orange/Seminole.
¶ People and organizations to map
- Key Civic & Business Entities:
- Seminole County Regional Chamber of Commerce: Active business advocacy network influencing economic policy, infrastructure priorities, and regional permitting.
- Altamonte Springs City Commission & Casselberry City Commission: Municipal governing bodies often collaborating on stormwater management and SR 436 transit corridor projects.
- CrossLife Church (Oviedo): Influential regional evangelical church community where Rep. David Smith is an active member. David Smith for State Representative - David Smith
- Prominent Civic Programs & Networks:
- Leadership Seminole & Leadership Orlando: Core leadership alumni networks providing cross-sector influence among business executives, elected leaders, and agency heads.
- Central Florida Marine Corps Foundation: Veteran advocacy group with active leadership participation by District 38 representatives. Florida House of Representatives
- Research Leads (Speculative Network Connections):
- Research Lead: Commercial real estate development PACs and engineering contractors active along the SR 436 multimodal improvement corridor may have substantial influence in state transportation appropriation requests.
- Research Lead: Simulation and defense contractor corporate entities based in nearby East Orange/Seminole research parks may maintain quiet political donor presence through associated Florida PAC networks given incumbent committee ties.
¶ Representation and legislative work
- Incumbent Member: Colonel David Smith (USMC, Ret.) David Smith for State Representative - David Smith
- Professional Background: Retired U.S. Marine Corps Colonel (UH-1N Helicopter Pilot, 52 combat missions in Iraq); Business consultant in the modeling, simulation, and training (MS&T) sector.
- Academic Background: BBA from Texas A&M University (1982); MS from Florida Institute of Technology (2000). Florida House of Representatives
- Key Committee Assignments (2024–2026 Term):
- Joint Committee on Public Counsel Oversight (Alternating Chair): Legislative oversight of the Office of Public Counsel, which represents consumers before the Florida Public Service Commission in utility rate-setting cases.
- Commerce Committee: Broad jurisdiction over business and professional regulation, insurance, energy, utilities, and commercial real estate policy.
- Ways & Means Committee: Handles tax packages, tax relief measures, exemptions, and corporate/property tax statutes.
- Rules & Ethics Committee: Oversees legislative procedures, decorum, ethics complaints, and internal House standards.
- Higher Education Budget Subcommittee: Appropriates funding across the Florida College System, State University System, and technical workforce training programs.
- Justice Budget Subcommittee: Recommends budgetary allocations for state courts, law enforcement, and correction agencies. David Smith for State Representative - David Smith
- Economic Infrastructure Subcommittee: Focuses on transit, energy grids, broadband expansion, and public works.
- Legislative Priorities: Vocational/technical workforce education funding, veteran homelessness and elder care protection, and targeted local appropriations for Seminole County infrastructure and environmental cleanup.
Research text: Gemini browser session, 2026-10-04. Officeholder and county coverage: Florida House directory. The graph keeps these leads separate from the reference office record.