U.S. Government: Elected Officials

Nancy Pelosi has represented San Francisco in Congress for more than 35 years. She served as the 52nd Speaker of the House of Representatives, having made history in 2007 when she was elected the first woman to serve as Speaker of the House. Pelosi made history again in January 2019 when she regained her position second-in-line to the presidency – the first person to do so in more than six decades. Speaker Pelosi is the chief architect of generation-defining legislation under two Democratic administrations, including the Affordable Care Act and the American Rescue Plan. Pelosi is fighting For The People: working to lower costs, increase paychecks and create jobs for American families.

Speaker Pelosi led House Democrats for 20 years and previously served as House Democratic Whip. In 2013, she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Seneca Falls, the birthplace of the American women’s rights movement.

Mike Thompson represents California’s 4th Congressional District. The district includes all or parts of Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma, and Yolo Counties. He was first elected in 1998. Prior to serving in Congress, Thompson represented California’s 2nd District in the California State Senate, where he chaired the powerful Budget Committee.

Thompson is a member of the House Committee on Ways and Means and as a senior member of the Health Subcommittee.

Thompson is the co-founder and co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Wine Caucus, which consists of over 215 U.S. Senators and Representatives. He is a member and was twice co-chair of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus. He is also a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, which is composed of Democrats committed to bipartisan problem solving and fiscal responsibility.

In 1990, Thompson was the first Vietnam veteran elected to the California State Senate. He served in combat with the U.S. Army as a staff sergeant/platoon leader with the 173rd Airborne Brigade where he was wounded and received a Purple Heart. He was also an instructor at the Army’s Airborne School.

Thompson is recognized in Congress and throughout his district as a strong leader for Democratic principles who has built a solid reputation for bipartisan problem solving.

Thompson’s number one priority in Congress is to create jobs and grow our economy. He has co-authored numerous pieces of legislation to improve our nation’s infrastructure, boost our renewable energy economy, and better our education system.

As Co-Chair of the bipartisan Military Veterans Caucus, he led the effort to improve treatment options for servicemembers suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress and Traumatic Brain Injury. He has authored bills to help veterans find work as they make the transition back to civilian life. And, as someone who went to college on the GI Bill himself, he helped lead the effort in Congress to pass the 21st Century GI Bill.

With a national debt of more than $30 trillion, Thompson is working on a balanced approach to get our fiscal house in order that includes creating jobs, cutting spending, asking everyone to pay their fair share, and requiring Congress to pay for the bills it passes.

In the wake of the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, Thompson was named Chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force. Thompson is a hunter, gun owner and strong supporter of the Second Amendment. He also believes that Congress should do more to reduce gun violence. In February of 2013, Thompson’s task force released a comprehensive set of policy principles that will reduce gun violence and respect the Second Amendment, including expanding the criminal background check system to all commercial firearm sales.

Thompson is the husband of a family nurse practitioner. He knows firsthand of the challenges that exist in our health care system. That is why he voted to pass the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and is working to build on the reforms made in the ACA to further improve everyone’s access to affordable, quality health care.

As an avid outdoorsman, Thompson is committed to preserving our district’s beautiful lands. Thompson was awarded the Sierra Club’s Edgar Wayburn Award for passing legislation that permanently protects 273,000 acres of wilderness in Northern California. The award is given in recognition of service to the environment by a person in government. Thompson was joined by other Sierra Club award winners, including former Vice President Al Gore and author and New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman.

Thompson is the co-author of comprehensive immigration reform. He also has worked to ensure equal rights for same sex couples, and has co-authored legislation that gives state and local law enforcement the tools to prosecute hate crimes based on sexual orientation. As a combat veteran, Thompson worked to end the discriminatory policy of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

Thompson is a small vineyard owner and was the maintenance supervisor for the Beringer Winery. He has taught Public Administration and State Government at San Francisco State University and California State University, Chico. He received his Master’s of Public Administration from California State University, Chico.

He is married to Janet Thompson. They have two sons, a firefighter and a deputy sheriff, and three wonderful granddaughters.

Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (DE-SOWN-YAY) proudly represents California’s 10th Congressional District, which includes much of Contra Costa County and a part of Alameda County. For more than 30 years in public service and as a small business owner, Mark has been a leader for working families. Since coming to Congress, he has passed more than 60 legislative efforts, proving to be an effective legislator who knows how to get things done.

In his eight years in the House, Congressman DeSaulnier has earned a reputation as one of its most engaged Representatives with CQ Roll Call saying: “A day with DeSaulnier illustrates the breakneck schedules of one of the House’s busiest members.”

Mark currently sits on the Committee on Education and Labor, where he serves as Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) and is on the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education. He also sits on the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure where he serves on the Subcommittees on Aviation, on Water Resources and Environment, on Highways and Transit, and on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials. In the 118th Congress, he was also appointed to the House Committee on Ethics where he has the honor of working on a bipartisan basis to foster good government and promote accountability, transparency, and integrity throughout the House, work central to his overarching goal as a Member of Congress to increase trust in government among the American people.

When Democrats held a majority prior to the 118th Congress, Mark was also a member of the influential House Committee on Rules, where he had the opportunity to weigh in on major pieces of legislation before they were brought to the House Floor. While on Rules, he was chosen by his colleagues to serve as Vice Chair of the Committee.

Outside of committee, Mark advances his legislative priorities through his work on House Caucuses, including the Congressional Progressive Caucus, the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, and the Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition, where he serves as Co-Chair of the Climate Jobs Task Force.

Representing the East Bay which has both transportation challenges and potential, Mark has made reducing congestion, easing commutes, and improving quality of life a top priority since coming to Congress and has successfully passed legislation to increase investment in transportation research and planning, improve public transit, and make our nation’s aviation system safer. As a former union member and small business owner, Mark is committed to ensuring working Americans have fair pay and benefits, addressing record-breaking inequality between corporations and employees, and supporting the workforce in the necessary transition to more reliable, long-term industries. He has also authored legislation to expand access to behavioral health resources for students, educators, and workers.

Prior to his time in Congress, Mark served as a California State Senator and Assembly member, where 61 of his bills became California state law. During his time in the legislature, he was the first freshman in history to chair the Assembly Transportation Committee. Mark later became Chair of the California State Senate Transportation and Housing Committee. He provided leadership for the Highway 4 BART expansion to eastern Contra Costa County, and the development of a fourth bore of the Caldecott Tunnel.

Congressman DeSaulnier’s office has twice earned recognition from the non-partisan Congressional Management Foundation for remarkable constituent service, receiving a Democracy Award for Transparency, Accountability, and Innovation in 2019.

Born in Lowell, Massachusetts, Mark earned his BA in History from the College of the Holy Cross. He was a member of both the Teamsters International Union and the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union. In the early 1970s, he moved to California and over the next 35 years, he owned and managed several successful Bay Area restaurants, including Henry Africa’s in San Francisco, Santa Fe Bar and Grill with Jeremiah Tower in Berkeley, and TR’s in Concord.

Congressman DeSaulnier lives in Concord where he raised his two sons, Tristan and Tucker. He is an avid runner and has completed twenty-three marathons.