Pamelya Herndon (born November 23, 1952) is an American attorney, accountant, and politician serving as a member of the

New Mexico House of Representatives The New Mexico House of Representatives () is the lower house of the New Mexico State Legislature. There are 70 members of the House. Each member represents roughly 25,980 residents of New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the South ...

from the 28th district since 2021.

Early life and education

Herndon was born November 23, 1952, in

Hempstead, Texas Hempstead is a city in and the county seat of Waller County, Texas, United States. It is part of the metropolitan area. History On December 29, 1856, Richard Rodgers Peebles and James W. McDade organized the Hempstead Town Company to sell lots ...

, to Kathryn and Daniel Norris Herndon. She is African-American. After attending

Roy Miller High School Roy Miller High School is a public high school located in the city of Corpus Christi, Texas, United States and classified as a 5A school by the UIL. It is a part of the Corpus Christi Independent School District. The school was known as Corpus Ch ...

, she earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from

Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...

in 1975 and a

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

University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the Law school in the United States, law school of the University of Texas at Austin, a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas. According to Texas Law’s American Bar ...

in 1978.

Career

Herndon moved to

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

in 1978, where she worked at an accounting firm. She was then hired by the

Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...

as a litigation attorney. She moved to

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

, in 1983. In 1998, Herndon joined the litigation division of the

Attorney General of New Mexico The attorney general of New Mexico, an elected executive officer of the state, oversees the New Mexico Attorney General's Office and serves as head of the New Mexico Department of Justice. The officeholder, who is required to be a licensed at ...

's office. In 2006, she was appointed general counsel of the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department. In 2009, she became deputy secretary of the New Mexico General Services Department. Herndon operated an independent legal practice until becoming executive director of the Southwest Women's Law Center in 2012. In October 2018, she became president and CEO of the KWH Law Center for Social Justice and Change. She has taught law courses at the

University of New Mexico School of Law The University of New Mexico School of Law (UNM Law or New Mexico Law) is the law school of the University of New Mexico, a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1947, it is the only law school in the st ...

and paralegal courses at

Brookline College Brookline College is a Private college, private For-profit higher education in the United States, for-profit college in Phoenix, Arizona. It offers associate degree, associate and bachelor's degrees in nursing and affiliated healthcare-related ...

–Albuquerque. Herndon has also hosted radio programs on KUNM.

New Mexico House of Representatives

On June 22, 2021, Herndon was appointed to the

by members of the Bernalillo County Commission. Herndon represents the 28th district, which was vacated when

Melanie Stansbury Melanie Ann Stansbury (born January 31, 1979) is an American politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative from New Mexico's 1st congressional district since 2021 New Mexico's 1st congressional district sp ...

resigned to serve in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

Personal life

Herndon married Alfred Mathewson in 1978. They have three children. Mathewson is an emeritus professor and former co-dean at the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herndon, Pamelya American accountants American women accountants People from Hempstead, Texas Howard University alumni University of Texas School of Law alumni Democratic Party members of the New Mexico House of Representatives Women state legislators in New Mexico New Mexico lawyers Politicians from Albuquerque, New Mexico Living people 1952 births 21st-century American women lawyers 21st-century American lawyers African-American state legislators in New Mexico 21st-century African-American women politicians 21st-century African-American politicians 21st-century American women politicians 20th-century American women lawyers 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American lawyers 21st-century African-American lawyers 21st-century members of the New Mexico Legislature