Nathalie Rayes is the President and CEO of Latino Victory Project, a national organization dedicated to building Latino political power. Rayes has devoted her career to advancing and empowering the Latino community through advocacy and education. Before joining Latino Victory Project, Rayes was Vice President
of Public Affairs for Grupo Salinas in the United States and Executive Director of Fundación Azteca America. Earlier in her career, she served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn, where she created and directed the city’s first–ever Office of Immigrant Affairs and managed the Mayor’s Office of Intergovernmental Relations, International Trade, and Protocol.
Rayes has been recently nominated by President Joe Biden to serve on the board of the United States Institute of Peace, pending Senate confirmation. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Hispanic Federation, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, and she is the chair of the Binational Advisory Group for the Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE). She served six years as President Barack Obama’s appointee to the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, chairing the Audit Committee.
Rayes was named one of the 25 most powerful Latinas in the United States by People en Español Magazine, Top 10 Hispanic Líderes by Hispanic Executive Magazine, and Al Día The Archetypes Public Service Honoree in 2021. She was recognized in the Huffington Post “40 Under 40 Latinos in Foreign Policy” and by HOPE with the “Ray of Hope” award in 2015. She is the recipient of UCLA Masters in Public Policy Alumna of the Year of 2014, Santa Monica College Distinguished Alumna Recognition Award for Outstanding Professional and Community Service Achievement of 2013, and El Diario La Prensa “Mujeres Destacadas Award” of 2012. She was 2007 Fellow of Asia Society Asia 21 Young Leaders Initiative.
Nathalie has a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology cum laude and a Master’s in Public Policy with concentrations in International Relations and Education from UCLA. She is fluent in Spanish and conversational Arabic. She resides in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts with her husband, Dr. Tarek Samad, their young sons, and their
Bernedoodle, Duke.