Norma Torres

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Norma Judith Torres (née Barillas; born April 4, 1965) is an American politician. She is a member of the United States House of Representatives for California's 35th congressional district. Previously, she was a member of the California State Senate representing the 32nd district. She is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life and career

Torres was born Norma Judith Barillas in Guatemala. When she was five, she and her uncle came to the United States; her mother died a year later. She originally arrived on a tourist visa, but became a legal resident in her teens and gained citizenship in 1992.

Torres worked as a 9-1-1 dispatcher, and in 1994 led a campaign to require the hiring of bilingual 9-1-1 operators. She was an active member of AFSCME, serving as local 3090's shop steward. She served on the Pomona city council before being elected the city's mayor in 2006. In 2008, Torres endorsed then-presidential candidate Barack Obama before Hillary Clinton withdrew from the race, and was a superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention. She was elected to the State Assembly in November 2008, filling the vacancy left by former legislator Nell Soto, who retired. She earned her bachelor's degree in labor studies from the now-defunct National Labor College in Maryland in 2012.

U.S. House of Representatives

Torres was elected to the U.S. House of Representative for California's 35th congressional district in 2014, defeating Christina Gagnier (D) with 63.5% of the vote. She was reelected in 2016, defeating Tyler Fischella (R) with 72.4% of the vote. In 2018, Torres received 69.4% of the vote to defeat Christian Valiente (R), and in 2020, she defeated Republican Mike Cargile with 69.3%.

After being reelected to the House in November 2022, Torres accused President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador of interfering in her race. Bukele had urged voters to oppose Torres.

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government
  • Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
  • Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
• Committee on House Administration
  • Subcommittee on Elections
  • Subcommittee on Oversight (Ranking Member)

Caucus memberships

• Black Maternal Health Caucus
• New Democrat Coalition
• Congressional Hispanic Caucus
• Congressional NextGen 9-1-1 Caucus

Political positions

File:Michal Herzog in Beit HaNassi, March 2024 (MYN 2287).jpg

Torres and other members of the US Congress with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem, March 28, 2024

Abortion

As of 2022, Torres has a 100% rating from NARAL Pro-Choice America and an F rating from the Susan B. Anthony List for her abortion-related voting record. She opposed the overturning of Roe v. Wade, calling it "devastating" and saying it set back "our country decades, reversing so many years of hard-fought progress" for women.

Big Tech

In 2022, Torres was one of 16 Democrats to vote against the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2021, an antitrust package that would crack down on corporations for anti-competitive behavior.

Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023

Torres was among the 46 Democrats who voted against final passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House.

Personal life

Torres is married to Louis Torres. They live in Pomona, California. They have three sons, including Robert Torres, a Pomona City Council member.

Electoral history

Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Wendy Maier |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 33.00% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Michael Mendez |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 6.40% |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Ray Moors |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 39.84% |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Kenny Coble |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 33.98% |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Paul Leon |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 26.39% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Larry Walker |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 13.61% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Joanne Gilbert |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 6.85% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Kenny Coble |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 6.41% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Paul Avila |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 2.49% |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Scott Heydenfeldt |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 9.39% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Anthony Vieyra |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 7.97% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Benjamin "Ben" Lopez (write-in) |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 2.07% |-

Template:Election box total no change Template:Election box open primary general election no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Christina Gagnier |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 36.55% |-

|-style="background-color:#F6F6F6" |style="color:inherit; background-color:"| !scope=row style="text-align:left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" colspan="4"| hold |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change Template:Election box total no change Template:Election box open primary general election no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Tyler Fischella |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 27.61% |-

|-style="background-color:#F6F6F6" |style="color:inherit; background-color:"| !scope=row style="text-align:left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" colspan="4"| hold |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Joe Baca |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 14.84% |-

Template:Election box total no change Template:Election box open primary general election no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Christian Valiente |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 30.60% |-

|-style="background-color:#F6F6F6" |style="color:inherit; background-color:"| !scope=row style="text-align:left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" colspan="4"| hold |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change Template:Election box total no change Template:Election box open primary general election no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Mark Cargile |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 30.67% |-

|-style="background-color:#F6F6F6" |style="color:inherit; background-color:"| !scope=row style="text-align:left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" colspan="4"| hold |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Rafael Carcamo |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 11.03% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Bob Erbst |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 5.04% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Lloyd Stevens |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 4.37% |-

Template:Election box total no change Template:Election box open primary general election no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Mark Cargile |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 42.64% |-

|-style="background-color:#F6F6F6" |style="color:inherit; background-color:"| !scope=row style="text-align:left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" colspan="4"| hold |-

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Template:Election box open primary begin no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Melissa May |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 7.94% |-

|- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Vijal Suthar |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 4.31% |-

Template:Election box total no change Template:Election box open primary general election no change Template:Election box winning candidate with party link no change |- class="vcard" |style="color:inherit;background-color:;width:2px" | |class="org" style="width:130px"| !scope=row style="text-align: left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" class=fn| Mark Cargile |style="text-align:right"| |style="text-align:right"| 41.59% |-

|-style="background-color:#F6F6F6" |style="color:inherit; background-color:"| !scope=row style="text-align:left; font-weight:normal; color:inherit; background:inherit;" colspan="4"| hold |-

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See also

• List of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States Congress
• Women in the United States House of Representatives

External links

• Congresswoman Norma Torres official U.S. House website
• Norma Torres for Congress campaign website
• Template:C-SPAN

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at the Library of Congress
• Profile at Vote Smart

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