Wednesday, October 9, 2024

Biden Chooses Three Latinos for His Administration

Although President Trump has refused to concede the election and accept his lost, President-elect Joe Biden has started to move forward with the transition in order to be ready to take office next year. Just yesterday, Biden announced his first picks for his senior staff and three Latinos were part of that.

One of them was Julie Chavez Rodriguez, a deputy campaign manager, serving as a director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. Julie Chavez Rodriguez, granddaughter of civil rights leader Cesar Chavez, a Mexican- American graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. She also participated in Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign as the national political director and traveling chief of staff. Moreover, she served under the Obama Administration as a special assistant to the former President Obama and Senior Deputy Director in the Office of Public Engagement.

The other two Latinos; Anthony Bernal and Julissa Reynoso Pantaleon, were announced to work for Jill Biden, the first lady. Anthony Bernal will serve as the first lady’s senior advisor. Bernal is her former chief of staff and deputy campaign manager throughout the presidential campaign. Bernal is a native of Arizona and he graduated from the University of Texas at El Paso. He has worked with the Biden family for over a decade. He also worked under President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore. He has held several positions in the private sector including international relations at Coca-Cola Co. and AARP.

Julissa Reynoso Pantaleon, a partner in the global law firm Winston & Strawn, will serve as a Chief of Staff. Her law firm work focuses on legal work on complex commercial litigation, regulatory enforcement and transnational issues. She served under the Obama Administration as the U.S. ambassador to Uruguay and as a Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere. There she developed security and rule of law strategies for Central American and the Caribbean. She also served on the board of Columbia Law School and is on the board of Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights under Law.

ABC