Raúl Torrez (born 1975/1976) is an American lawyer and politician from New Mexico. A member of the
Democratic Party, Torrez is the
Attorney General of New Mexico.
Early life and education
Torrez's father, Presiliano Torrez, was a federal prosecutor and his mother taught Spanish at
Sandia Preparatory School. He graduated from Sandia Prep, and then attended
Harvard University, where he graduated ''
cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...
''
[ with a Bachelor of Arts in government. He earned a Master of Science in international political economy from the London School of Economics,][ and then worked for the Cesar Chavez Foundation in Los Angeles before attending Stanford Law School, earning his ]Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
.[
]
Career
After graduating from law school in 2005, Torrez became an assistant district attorney in Valencia County, New Mexico. The next year, he took a job in the office of the New Mexico attorney general. In 2008, Torrez was chief counsel to Ben Luján
Ben Luján, Sr. (July 12, 1935 – December 18, 2012) was an American politician from New Mexico. A Democrat, he was the Speaker of the New Mexico House of Representatives. He served in the State House from 1975 through 2012. He was elected as ...
, the speaker of the New Mexico House of Representatives, and then he served as a White House Fellow in the class of 2009–2010 during the presidency of Barack Obama
Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. A Democrat from Illinois, Obama took office following a decisive victory over Republican n ...
.district attorney
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...
of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, in 2016. He won the general election without opposition from a Republican.
Attorney general of New Mexico
With Hector Balderas
Hector Hugo Balderas Jr. (born August 16, 1973) is an American lawyer and former prosecutor who has been the attorney general of New Mexico since 2015. In 2006, Balderas became the youngest statewide Hispanic elected official in the nation when h ...
unable to run for reelection as New Mexico Attorney General in the 2022 election due to term limits, Torrez announced his candidacy to succeed him in May 2021. Torrez won the Democratic nomination, defeating New Mexico State Auditor Brian Colón
Brian S. Colón is an American lawyer and politician who served as the New Mexico state auditor from 2019 to 2023. He is the former chairman of the Democratic Party of New Mexico. In 2010, he ran for and lost his bid for Lieutenant Governor of Ne ...
, and faced Republican Jeremy Gay. Torrez defeated Gay in the general election.
Personal life
Torrez's wife, Nasha, is also an attorney and is a dean at the University of New Mexico.[ They have two children.]
Electoral history
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References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torrez, Raul
Alumni of the London School of Economics
District attorneys in New Mexico
Harvard University alumni
Living people
New Mexico Attorneys General
New Mexico Democrats
Politicians from Albuquerque, New Mexico
Stanford Law School alumni
Year of birth missing (living people)