American politician & attorney (born 1959)
Teresa Isabel Leger Fernandez (
teh-RESS -ah LEDGE -ər ferr-NAHN -dess ; born July 1, 1959)
[1]
[2] is an American attorney and politician representing
New Mexico's 3rd congressional district in the
United States House of Representatives .
[3]
[4]
Early life and education
Leger Fernandez was born in
Las Vegas, New Mexico .
[5] Her mother,
Mela Leger , was a bilingual educator and her father,
Ray Leger , served as a member of the
New Mexico Senate .
[6] After graduating from
West Las Vegas High School , Leger Fernandez earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from
Yale University and a
Juris Doctor from
Stanford Law School .
[7]
Career
After graduating from law school, Leger Fernandez returned to
New Mexico to work as an attorney, specializing in community-building and tribal advocacy. She was a
White House Fellow during the
Clinton administration and later served on the
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation during the
Obama administration .
[8]
[9] She also worked as a liaison between the
White House Office and the
Department of Housing and Urban Development . For 30 years, Leger Fernandez has operated Leger Law and Strategy, LLC in
Santa Fe . The firm focuses on community development, tribal advocacy, civil rights, and social justice.
[10] In 2017, she led a successful effort to implement
ranked-choice voting in Santa Fe's municipal elections.
[11]
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2020
After incumbent Representative
Ben Ray Luján announced that he would not seek reelection in 2020 and instead run for the
United States Senate seat being vacated by
Tom Udall , Leger Fernandez announced her candidacy to succeed Luján. In the Democratic primary, Leger Fernandez faced six opponents, including New Mexico State Representative
Joseph L. Sanchez and
Valerie Plame , an author and former CIA officer.
[12] During the campaign, Leger Fernandez was endorsed by Congresswoman
Deb Haaland ,
EMILY's List , and
The Santa Fe New Mexican .
[13]
[14]
A political
progressive , Leger Fernandez was also endorsed by the
Working Families Party ,
Elizabeth Warren , and
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez .
[15] She placed first in the primary with over 42% of the vote.
[16]
In the November general election, Leger Fernandez defeated Republican nominee Alexis Johnson. She assumed office on January 3, 2021.
[17]
[18]
Tenure
Committee assignments
[20]
Caucus membership
Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Vice Chair of Communications
Democratic Women's Caucus, Vice Chair
National Labs Caucus, Co-Chair
Rural Broadband Caucus, Co-Chair
Congressional Progressive Caucus
Diabetes Caucus
Labor Caucus
LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus
Mental Health Caucus
National Heritage Area Caucus
Native American Caucus
PFAS Caucus
Pro-Choice Caucus
Rural Caucus
Ski Caucus
[21]
Political positions
Leger Fernandez has advocated a "New Mexico
Green New Deal ",
Medicare for All , a transition from
fracking to green energy, and a ban on the sale of military-style semi-automatic rifles.
[22] She supported comprehensive immigration reform and the
DREAM Act .
[23] During the
117th Congress , she voted with President Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time, according to a
FiveThirtyEight analysis.
[24]
Personal life
Leger Fernandez and her ex-husband, Luis Fernandez, have three sons.
[25]
See also
References
^ Baker, Damare (November 30, 2020).
"Rep.-elect Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-N.M.-03)" .
The Hill .
Archived from the original on March 24, 2022. Retrieved December 1, 2020 .
^
"Teresa Leger Fernandez" . Retrieved January 13, 2021 .
^
"New Mexico Primary Election Results: Third Congressional District" . The New York Times . June 2, 2020.
ISSN
0362-4331 .
Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^ Medina, Jennifer (June 3, 2020).
"Teresa Leger Fernandez Beats Valerie Plame in New Mexico House Primary" . The New York Times .
ISSN
0362-4331 .
Archived from the original on March 9, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^ Bennett, Megan Bennett.
"Santa Fe lawyer kicks off campaign for Congress" . www.abqjournal.com .
Archived from the original on May 23, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^ Grover, Hannah.
"Election 2020: Teresa Leger Fernandez hopes to represent Congressional District 3" . Tallahassee Democrat .
Archived from the original on May 23, 2021. Retrieved July 18, 2020 .
^ Gerstein, Michael (June 2, 2020).
"Leger Fernandez wins Democratic primary for 3rd Congressional District seat" . Santa Fe New Mexican .
Archived from the original on June 8, 2020. Retrieved June 8, 2020 .
^ Grover, Hannah.
"Election 2020: Teresa Leger Fernandez hopes to represent Congressional District 3" . Farmington Daily Times .
Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^
"Meet Teresa" . Teresa 4 All .
Archived from the original on May 23, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^
"Teresa Leger de Fernandez, Rebellious Lawyer" . Rebellious Lawyering Institute #RebelliousLawyering . January 7, 2015.
Archived from the original on May 23, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^ Last, T. S. (June 7, 2020).
"Democratic nominee in CD3 inspired by state senator father" . www.abqjournal.com .
Archived from the original on May 23, 2021. Retrieved June 9, 2020 .
^
"Santa Fe lawyer Leger Fernandez running for Congress" . AP NEWS . May 16, 2019.
Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^ Panetta, Grace.
"LIVE UPDATES: Valerie Plame and Teresa Leger Fernandez compete in the primary for New Mexico's third district" . Business Insider .
Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^
"Endorsements" . Teresa 4 All .
Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^ Blaber, Mona (January 23, 2020).
"Sierra Club endorses Teresa Leger Fernandez for U.S. House" . Rio Grande Chapter .
Archived from the original on July 5, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020 .
^ Gerstein, Michael (June 3, 2020).
"With clear primary victory, Leger Fernandez eyes November" . Santa Fe New Mexican .
Archived from the original on July 4, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020 .
^
"Teresa Leger Fernandez will take U.S. House District 3 seat" . KRQE News 13 Albuquerque - Santa Fe . November 4, 2020.
Archived from the original on November 6, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2020 .
^ Grover, Hannah.
"Leger Fernandez wins Democratic nomination for CD3, Johnson leads in Republican primary" . Farmington Daily Times .
Archived from the original on June 7, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2020 .
^
"Pelosi Announces Additional Committee Assignments for 117th Congress" . Speaker Nancy Pelosi . December 18, 2020. Archived from
the original on January 5, 2021. Retrieved January 8, 2021 .
^ Washington, U. S. Capitol Room H154; p:225-7000, DC 20515-6601.
"Teresa Leger Fernandez (New Mexico (NM)), 118th Congress Profile" . Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives . Retrieved July 2, 2023 . {{
cite web }}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (
link )
^
"Committees and Caucuses" . Representative Teresa Fernandez . September 22, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2023 .
^
"Editorial: Our picks for president, Congress" . The Taos News . May 6, 2020.
Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
^ Candidate, The (May 8, 2020).
"Q&A: U.S. House District 3 Teresa Leger Fernandez" . www.abqjournal.com .
Archived from the original on June 8, 2020. Retrieved June 8, 2020 .
^ Bycoffe, Aaron; Wiederkehr, Anna (April 22, 2021).
"Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?" . FiveThirtyEight . Retrieved November 15, 2023 .
^
"Teresa Leger Fernandez For NM US Congress In District Three" . Retake Our Democracy . May 23, 2020.
Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020 .
External links
Territorial (1851–1912)
At-large seats (1912–1969)
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