Congresswoman Michelle Lujan Grisham will lead a group in Congress representing Hispanic members of the chamber.
The Hispanic members of the incoming Congress elected Lujan Grisham as chairwoman of the Congressional Hispanic Congress.
The Congressional Hispanic Congress is a non-partisan group made up of members of Congress which says it “advocates for issues important to Latinos via the legislative process in Congress.”
“I want to thank my colleagues for entrusting me with the great responsibility of leading the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in the 115th Congress,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement Thursday. “As the next Chairwoman, I intend to continue building on the many accomplishments we have achieved this Congress and ensure that the Caucus is leading the fight to support Hispanic communities and protect families across the country.”
The first vice chair will be Joaquin Castro of Texas, the second vice chair will be Ruben Gallego of Arizona and the caucus whip will be Pete Aguilar of California. All members of leadership are Democrats.
In 2003, Republican members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus split off and created their own Congressional Hispanic Conference.
Lujan Grisham previously was the first vice chair. The first vice chair is typically elevated to the chair.
Rep. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico was vice chair before Lujan Grisham, but he became the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee instead of moving up to leadership of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Luján will chair the DCCC for a second election cycle this year.
The caucus represents 31 members, which Lujan Grisham said is a record-breaking total. Previously, the caucus represented 26 members.