Rita Mendes is an American
state legislator
A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system.
Two federations literally use the term "state legislature":
* The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...
serving in the
Massachusetts House of Representatives
The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...
. She is a
Brockton, Massachusetts
Brockton is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States; the population was 105,643 at the 2020 United States census. Along with Plymouth, Massachusetts, Plymouth, it is one of the two county seats of Plymouth County, Massachusetts, ...
resident and a member of the
Democratic Party.
Early life and education
Mendes was born in Brazil and immigrated to the United States when she was 12 years old.
She graduated from
Brockton High School
Brockton High School, established in 1870, is a high school located in Brockton, Massachusetts and a part of Brockton Public Schools. As of 2016, it is one of the largest high schools in the United States and the largest one in Massachusetts wi ...
and later attended
Massasoit Community College
Massasoit Community College is a public community college in Brockton, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1966 and named for Massasoit, the Great Sachem of the Wampanoag. Massasoit Community College is accredited by the New England Commission of H ...
where she earned her
Associates degree
Associate may refer to:
Academics
* Associate degree, a two-year educational degree in the United States, and some areas of Canada
* Associate professor, an academic rank at a college or university
* Technical associate or Senmonshi, a Japa ...
. She went on to receive her Bachelor's degree from the
University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth and her
Juris Doctor
A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...
from the
New England School of Law
New England Law Boston (formerly New England School of Law, and styled as New England Law Boston) is a private law school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded as Portia School of Law in 1908 and is located in downtown Boston near the Massa ...
.
Political career
Mendes was elected to the Brockton City Council in 2019. She became the first
Brazilian-American
Brazilian Americans ( or ) are Americans who are of full or partial Brazilian ancestry. The Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs estimates the Brazilian American population to be 1,905,000, the largest of any Brazilian diaspora. The larges ...
to hold office in Brockton.
In 2022, after United States President
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
named
Claire Cronin ambassador to Ireland, Mendes announced her run for the vacant
. She won the Democratic primary with 67.6% of the vote. Mendes faced no opposition in the general election, winning with over 90% of the vote.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendes, Rita
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century members of the Massachusetts General Court
Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in Massachusetts