Maria Lorts Sachs was a member of the Florida Senate from 2010 to 2016, representing parts of Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Previously, she served two terms in the Florida House of Representatives, representing part of southern Palm Beach County from 2006 until her election to the Senate. After her seat was redistricted in 2016, she opted not to seek reelection, and was hired as the executive director of Innovation Florida, a nonprofit advocacy organization.

Sachs was born in Battle Creek, Michigan and attended the University of Maryland, where she received her bachelor’s degree, Boston University, where she received her master’s degree, and, after she moved to Florida in 1976, the University of Miami, where she received her Juris Doctor. Following her graduation from law school, she worked as an assistant state attorney in the narcotics division in Miami-Dade County and in Broward County before working for Sachs and Sax, a civil law firm.

Palm Beach County Commissioners selected Maria Sachs to serve as the county’s next mayor at a reorganization meeting on Nov. 21, 2023.