Nora Vargas

Nora E. Vargas (born 1970/1971) is an American politician serving as chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors since 2023, representing District 1 since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, she is the first immigrant and the first Latina to serve in the body.^[1][2] Having been re-elected in November 2024, Vargas announced on December 20, 2024 that she would not be taking office in the next term.

Nora Vargas
Vargas in 2021
Chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors
Incumbent
Assumed office January 10, 2023
Preceded by	Nathan Fletcher
Vice Chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors
In office January 5, 2021 – January 9, 2023
Preceded by	Nathan Fletcher
Succeeded by	Terra Lawson-Remer
Member of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors from the 1st district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 4, 2021
Preceded by	Greg Cox
Personal details
Born	October 14, 1971 Tijuana, Mexico
Political party	Democratic
Residence(s)	Chula Vista, California, U.S.
Education	University of San Francisco (BA) Claremont Graduate University

Early life and education

Vargas was born in Tijuana, Mexico, and grew up in Southern San Diego County. She graduated from Montgomery High School then attended Southwestern College before transferring to the University of San Francisco where she earned a Bachelor's degree in politics.^[1] and graduate work in women's studies from Claremont Graduate University.^[3]

She has worked at various non-profit organizations and was vice president of community and governmental relations at Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest.^[4] Governor Jerry Brown appointed her to the California State Teachers' Retirement System in 2015 and she served on the Southwestern College board.^[1][5]

San Diego County Board of Supervisors

Vargas was elected to succeed longtime District 1 Supervisor Greg Cox in 2020, defeating State Senator Ben Hueso in the general election. The district includes Chula Vista, Coronado, and National City as well as the San Diego communities of Barrio Logan, San Ysidro, and Otay.^[6][7] She was sworn in on January 4, 2021, and selected to be vice chair of the board.^[8][5] Vargas was elected chair of the board on January 9, 2023,^[9][10] and re-elected as chair on January 9, 2024.^[11] Vargas was re-elected to another term in November 2024. On December 20, she announced that she will not be taking the oath of office in January 2025 "due to personal safety and security reasons."^[12][13]

Electoral history

2020 San Diego County Board of Supervisors primary election for the first district^[14]

Candidate		Votes	%
Ben Hueso		32,263	29.29
Nora Vargas		20,767	18.86
Rafa Castellanos		17,934	16.28
Sophia Rodriguez		16,634	15.10
Alex Galicia		13,232	12.01
Henry Belisle		4,035	3.66
Camilo Marquez		2,679	2.43
Tony Villafranca		2,591	2.35
Total votes		110,135	100.00

2020 San Diego County Board of Supervisors general election for the first district^[15]

Candidate		Votes	%
Nora Vargas		131,783	56.58
Ben Hueso		101,133	43.42
Total votes		232,916	100.00

References

1. Mendoza, Alexandra; Clark, Charles (November 28, 2020). "San Diego Supervisor-elect Nora Vargas sets stage for more Latinas, and a focus on health, equity". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
2. Peters, LAMonica (March 28, 2021). "Women's History Month: Nora Vargas, the 1st Latina San Diego County Board Supervisor". KFMB-TV. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
3. Davalos, Carlos (May 2, 2013). "New board member sworn in". The Star-News. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
4. "Women Who Impact San Diego". San Diego Metro Magazine. May 29, 2014. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
5. Rivlin-Nadler, Max (February 8, 2021). "This Latina landed a seat on the powerful San Diego County Board of Supervisors — a first for her community". The World. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
6. Nikolewski, Rob (November 3, 2020). "Nora Vargas maintains lead against Ben Hueso in District 1 county supervisor race". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
7. "Nora Vargas projected to win San Diego County Board of Supervisors District 1". KUSI-TV. November 4, 2020. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
8. Billing, Karen (January 7, 2021). "Lawson-Remer sworn into SD County Board of Supervisors". Encinitas Advocate. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
9. Alvarenga, Emily (2024-01-09). "Nora Vargas will chair San Diego County Board of Supervisors for a second year". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
10. Diego, Debbie L. Sklar • Times of San (2023-01-11). "Vargas Voted in as County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman". Times of San Diego. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
11. Alvarenga, Emily (2024-01-09). "Nora Vargas will chair San Diego County Board of Supervisors for a second year". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
12. Alvarenga, Emily (2024-12-20). "In surprise announcement, Nora Vargas will step down as supervisor, despite winning 2nd term". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
13. Holden, Lindsey; He, Eric; McCarthy, Will (2024-12-20). "San Diego official resigns suddenly over 'security reasons'". POLITICO. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
14. "County of San Diego Presidential Primary Election – Tuesday, March 3, 2020 – Official Results (San Diego Portion Only)" (PDF). San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
15. "County of San Diego Presidential General Election – Tuesday, November 3, 2020 – Official Results (San Diego Portion Only)" (PDF). San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.

External links

• Official Campaign Website
• Supervisor Nora Vargas Official Website