Michele Martinez | Strategic Development & Government Affairs Consultant

Michele Martinez | Strategic Development & Government Affairs Consultant

Michele Martinez is a  “ key leader, “consultant” and the current Mayor Pro Tem for the City of Santa Ana, CA and the former President of the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), the nation’s largest metropolitan planning organization, representing six counties, 191 cities and more than 18 million residents and the former President of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), a non-partisan organization made up of more than 6,000 federal, state and local officials.

Michele is considered one of the nation’s transformational political leaders of her time and is recognized for her reputation as a regional public policy leader, her understanding and knowledge in politics and government in California, fostering innovation and data driven policy decision-making, and her ability to connect the dots to build thriving communities that put people first and lastly, her regional cutting-edge approach on advancing policies and solutions to the unique and complex challenges in navigating  the regulatory and political environment in housing, water, air, transportation, economic development, land-use/ zoning, and technology.

Using her 15 years of public policy experience and her influence as a regional and national leader Michele will be able to tap into her extensive network of relationships to support the companies mission to create healthy, vibrant, and sustainable communities for people from all walks of life and to collaborate with municipalities to co-create equitable transit oriented development in order to maximize social returns on investment.

Michele has been listed as one of 16 people to watch in Orange County in 2016, Huffington Posts 40 under 40: Latinos in American Politics, Latinas Today, Latina’s Style Magazine, Emerging Latina of the Year and recently was accepted to attend  the Senior Executive in State and Local Government Program at the Harvard Kennedy School of Executive Education.

Michele currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Metropolitan Water District, Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Committee, Local Government Commission, California League of Cities, Latino Caucus, Orange County Council of Governments, Orange County League of Cities Division, League of California Cities , Revenue and Taxation policy committee . Michele is also a part-time adjunct professor for Santiago Canyon Community College teaching code enforcement and inspector professionals in government.

Michele is a proud graduate of California State University, Fullerton were she earned a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice. Michele is a native of Los Angeles and a resident of Santa Ana for over 25 years.