Russell was born in Doctors Hospital in Coral Gables, Florida,[1] and raised in Coconut Grove and Key Biscayne.

[7] Russell became involved in local politics in 2013 when he and other residents of Coconut Grove insisted that the city remove, rather than cover, toxic soil from a park.

[1] In 2015, Russell ran to represent District 2 on the Miami City Commission; incumbent Marc Sarnoff was prevented from running again due to term limits.

[6][8] Russell won the election with 42 percent; though he did not earn enough votes to automatically avoid a runoff, the second place finisher withdrew from the race.

[13][14] After determining that Val Demings was likely to win the Democratic nomination in the Senate race, he switched his candidacy to the U.S. House of Representatives for Florida's 27th district in May 2022.