The NALEO Edward R. Roybal Legacy Celebration features the presentation of the Edward R. Roybal Award for Outstanding Public Service. Established in 1996 and presented annually, this award honors individuals who have distinguished themselves as devoted public servants to the nation and pays tribute to the organization’s founder and President Emeritus, the late Congressman Edward R. Roybal.

Catherine Cortez Masto is the first woman from Nevada and the first Latina ever elected to the U.S. Senate. Born and raised in Las Vegas, Cortez Masto has spent her career protecting Nevada families. As Nevada’s Attorney General, Cortez Masto fought to protect seniors and combat drug crime, strengthened laws to end sex trafficking and violence against women, and took on the Big Banks. In the Senate, Cortez Masto has taken her fight for working Nevadans to Washington, D.C., by working to keep Nevadans safe, protect access to health care, create good-paying jobs, hold banks accountable when they harm hardworking families and homeowners, defend Dreamers so they can continue to live in the only country they’ve ever called home, and grow Nevada’s innovation and renewable energy economy while also prioritizing workers and union families. Cortez Masto earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in Finance from the University of Nevada, Reno in 1986, and a J.D. from Gonzaga University School of Law in 1990. She resides in Las Vegas with her husband Paul.

Biography provided by awardee.