UNITED STATES SENATE
SUBJECT: Ambassadorial Nomination: Certificate of
Demonstrated Competence — Foreign Service
Act, Section 304(a)(4)
SUBJECT: Ambassadorial Nomination: Certificate of
Demonstrated Competence — Foreign Service
Act, Section 304(a)(4)
POST: Republic of Croatia
CANDIDATE:Nathalie Rayes
Nathalie Rayes has had a distinguished career in public service as a leader, consensus builder, and advocate. Rayes is the president and CEO of Latino Victory. Before joining Latino Victory, 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 managed the Office of Intergovernmental Relations, International Trade, and Protocol, established Los Angeles’ first Office of Immigrant Affairs, and formed sister cities with San Salvador, El Salvador, Beirut, Lebanon, and Ischia, Italy. Rayes’ record of leadership, life-long commitment to public service and strong people-to-people skills make her a well-qualified candidate to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Croatia.
Rayes currently serves as President Biden’s appointee to the board of the United States Institute of Peace. She also serves on the board of directors of the Hispanic Federation, chairs the Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE) Binational Advisory Group, and is an advisory board member of the Aspen Institute Latinos and Society Program. Rayes served as President Obama’s appointee to the board of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars from 2014-2020. In 2015 she was recognized in the Huffington Post’s “40 Under 40 Latinos in Foreign Policy.”
Rayes earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology cum laude and a Master’s in Public Policy with concentrations in International Relations and Education from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She is the author of numerous publications and speaks fluent Spanish and conversational Arabic.