
Ritchie Torres is a Bronx-born politician who rose from a low-income, public-housing upbringing to national office. An Afro-Latino New Yorker, he built his early career in city government and the New York City Council, gaining notice for aggressive oversight of agencies and a strong focus on public housing conditions and basic services. Elected to the U.S. House in 2020, he has continued to center housing, accountability, and constituent needs. Openly gay, Torres has made LGBTQ visibility part of his public identity, becoming a prominent gay lawmaker and a symbol of representation for communities like the Bronx.
Quote: “That to me is self-determination, that is decolonization. That is democracy.“

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