Nellie Gorbea


Nellie M. Gorbea is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, she is the Secretary of State of Rhode Island. Gorbea is the first Hispanic to win statewide office in New England.

Early life and education

Gorbea was born and raised in Puerto Rico. She earned a bachelor's degree from Princeton University's School of International and Public Affairs and a master's degree in public administration from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs. She moved to Rhode Island in the mid-1990s.

Career

Gorbea was Deputy Secretary of State under Secretary of State Matthew A. Brown from 2002 through 2006. She worked for Fleet Securities, was the program officer for economic and community development for the Rhode Island Foundation, and founded the Rhode Island Latino Civic Fund. Before resigning in July 2013 to run for election as Secretary of State, she was executive director of Housing Works Rhode Island for five and a half years.
Incumbent Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis was ineligible to run for reelection in 2014 because of term limits. Gorbea campaigned for the position on a platform of making elections fair, fast and accurate, ensuring that Rhode Island businesses can easily start and thrive, bringing transparency to government, and increasing civic engagement. She defeated Guillaume de Ramel in the Democratic primary and Republican nominee John Carlevale in the general election. She was sworn in as Secretary of State on January 6, 2015, becoming the first Hispanic to hold statewide office in New England.
In 2016, Secretary Gorbea ushered in legislation to allow for stiffer penalties for violations of lobbying rules. In 2017, she worked to pass automatic voter registration, making Rhode Island the ninth state in the United States to do so.
Gorbea was re-elected, with over 67% of the vote, to serve a second term in office on November 6, 2018.
In 2018, Secretary Gorbea worked to modernize Rhode Island's notary public laws to allow for electronic notarizations for the first time in Rhode Island.

Personal life

Gorbea lives in North Kingstown. She and her husband, Steven D'Hondt, have three daughters.

Electoral history