Born May 28, 1971, Marco Rubio is an American politician, attorney, and junior United States senator from Florida. Marco is Cuban American from Miami and the Republican candidate for the 2016 presidential election. He served as the speaker of the Florida House of Representatives.
He graduated high school in 1989 and attended Tarkio College on a football scholarship from 1989 to 1990 before enrolling at Santa Fe Community College in Gainesville, Florida. Marco graduated with a B.A. in political science from the University of Florida in 1993 and a J.D. degree from the University of Miami School of Law in 1996. He dropped out of the presidential race in March 2016 after losing the Florida primary to Donald Trump.
Having been in the spotlight, details about his personal life have become of interest. Here is what you need to know about his wife, family, children, and gay status.
Is Marco Rubio Married?
Senator Marco has been married to his wife, Jeanette Christina Dousdebes since 1998. The duo met at a neighborhood party when she was 17 and Marco, 19 and in college.
After seven years of dating, Marco proposed to her at the top of the Empire State Building on Valentine’s Day, in 1997. Imagine the height he went to, to get started, no wonder they are still scaling heights together as a family. They got married in October 1998 at the Church of the Little Flower in Coral Gables, Florida.
Marco Rubio’s Wife
Jeanette Christina Dousdebes was born on December 5, 1973, in Florida to Colombian migrant parents who later got divorced when she was only six. This is probably why she is putting in everything she can to make sure she has the best marriage.
She attended South Miami High School, her husband’s alma mater, and Miami Dade College. Prior to her marriage, she worked as a bank teller and was a member of the Miami Dolphin Cheerleader in 1997 at her sister’s (who was already a member) request. She doesn’t seem to have enjoyed it as she dropped out after only one year.
She enrolled for a course in fashion design at the International Fine Arts College but changed her priority to building her home and raising her kids having gotten pregnant, leaving one year later with only one semester left.
Jeanette who would rather have a settled and predictable family life admits to being shy and not wanting to be in the media but her husband’s political ambition and career brought her out. Nevertheless, she has been his ever-supportive wife who is always there for their kids. Her husband referred to her as his pride checker and runs to her for advice.
Though she expressed that being married to a politician and being a mother to four kids is more like being a single mom, she has never failed to remind her husband of his duty even if it means shuttling between Miami and the state capital, Tallahassee to be with him during his time in the legislature.
What Does Jeanette Christina Do? Politics?
Outside the family, she works as a volunteer for an organization called Kristi’s House, which focuses on youths who have been abused or involved in human trafficking in the Miami area. She works for Norman Braman, a billionaire auto dealer in Miami who has long nurtured Mr. Rubio’s career with advice, financial support, and campaign contributions.
Jeanette is also very religious, she holds a weekly Bible Study class in her home and reportedly takes her family regularly to two places of religious worship: a Catholic church and the Baptist megachurch Christ Fellowship.
She tolerated politics but never relished it, and has, however, found a way of using her husband’s position to help bring to light some of the causes most important to her. One instance was when she learned of the youth sex trade in Florida, she pushed her husband to confront the issue in the Senate and he co-sponsored legislation to protect victims.
Marco Rubio’s Children
Marco’s marriage to Jeanette has produced four active kids; two daughters; Amanda and Danielle, and two sons, Dominick, and Anthony. They live in West Miami, Florida, with their parents, close to their families, and a large number of cousins.
Amanda, the eldest child took after her mother and is a competitive stunt cheerleader. While Amanda is an avid horseback rider and competes in Florida, her brothers play football. Marco who enjoys spending time with his kids coaches his sons having played in high school and nurtured a dream of being an NFL player.
Family, Parents
Marco’s parents, Mario and Oriales Rubio are Cuban immigrants who came to the U.S. to improve their lives in 1956 three years before Fidel Castro rose to power. His parents applied for U.S. citizenship and were naturalized in 1975, four years after his birth.
The family then moved to Las Vegas, Nevada where his father worked as a bartender at the Sam’s Town Hotel and his mother as a housekeeper at the Imperial Palace Hotel.
Later on, his father also worked as a crossing guard and his mother as a Kmart stock clerk. He has three siblings, Mario, Barbara, and Veronica. His father died in 2010 of lung cancer after 61 years of marriage to his wife. He described his father as a great force and the reason for his presidential aspirations.
Is Marco Rubio Gay? Affair
Marco is a practicing Catholic and of course, married, so he is certainly not gay. He is opposed to same-sex marriage and has been challenged severely for the same. During his presidential campaign, he had an exchange with a gay man and reiterated his stand on same-sex marriage. He believes that marriage is an important cornerstone of society and how it is done matters. Respecting other people’s views on what and how marriage should be, he opines strongly that it should be between one man and one woman.
Marco is a devoted family man who enjoys spending time with his family at any slightest chance he got. There is no rumor of an affair so far.
Height and Net Worth
There is a general belief that similar to a game of basketball, the taller candidate has the advantage when it comes to being the president leaving one to wonder if there is a correlation between height and power.
During his presidential race, his height became a topic for discussion and review. His height is 5’10” (1.75 m) though there are rumors that he’s closer to 5’8″. He would have been the second shortest US president since William McKinley, who stood at 5’7.
His net worth was described as negative in 2012 and he was reported to have made a lot of bad money choices. It was also speculated that being raised in a poor home could have contributed to his fluctuating net worth. He, however, has an estimated net worth above $200,000 coming mostly from his salary, book royalty, and a teaching position.
