TX-23: Gina Ortiz Jones (D)
PROFILE
About Jones:
Gina Ortiz Jones learned at an early age that it takes hard work and opportunity to create a better future. Her mother, who graduated from a prestigious university, left home and came to the United States as a domestic helper – because she believed the sacrifice would afford her family a better life.
Supported by her family and educators who both challenged and believed in her, Jones graduated in the top 10 of her class from San Antonio’s John Jay High School, earning a four-year Air Force ROTC scholarship to attend Boston University. She established the “Leadership through Service” scholarship at her alma mater in 2013 – an annual award that recognizes students who are succeeding in the classroom and also serving their country.
After graduating from Boston University with a B.A. and M.A. in Economics, and a B.A. in East Asian Studies, she entered the U.S. Air Force as an intelligence officer, where she deployed to Iraq and served under the U.S. military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.
In the 12-years following her active duty service, she has continued to build her career in national security, intelligence, and defense – including advising on operations in Latin America and Africa and serving in the Libya Crisis Intelligence Cell. Detailed from the Intelligence Community, she served as the senior advisor for Trade Enforcement, a position President Obama created by Executive Order in 2012. She would later be invited to serve as a director for investment at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
She was recognized as a 2016 American Council on Germany Young Leader and is a Council on Foreign Relations term member. She is also a member of the Truman National Security Project Defense Council and earned a graduate degree from the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies.
