Drawing on my 35 years as a public servant, I will continue to champion public policies for diverse families and communities.

I pledge to promote “governance for and by the people” and assure that the people (not politicians or political power) set the priorities and identify courses of policy action. My Mexican American-Immigrant heritage (Cacari), roots in rural America (Stone) and working-class background in the farming, railroad and service industries taught me that fighting for the rights and the voice of the people is our American democracy in action.

I will apply smart policies that draw on the voice of communities most impacted by inequities. For instance, I founded an Equity in Policy Institute that trained local leadership teams to engage with policymakers and advance their priorities for change. Having served as a policy analyst for our NM State Legislature and as a fellow for Senator “TED” Kennedy with the U.S. Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, I know how to harness the power of civic engagement and research in policy making.

As a Latina trailblazer, I will continue to champion change.

I’m a first generation college graduate with a PhD in social policy at The Heller School, Brandeis University and a post-doctorate at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

My partner of 29 years (Roberta Duran) and I are one of the Sandoval County 64 couples who were among the first to be legally married in New Mexico.

I invite you to join my campaign as:

The People's Choice,

The People's Voice.

Together, we can put people first and create a community that works for everyone.