Councilmember Omar Torres is a San José native growing up in the Guadalupe-Washington Neighborhood with two hard-working parents that from an early age instilled the values of education, hard work, and community. Public service wasn't something Omar picked up along the way, it was required from an early age for him to fight for security and services in his neighborhood. At the age of 14, a young Omar witnessed a tragic and fatal drive-by shooting that sparked the young advocate to speak up and demand action. 

 

Over the course of his teenage years and into adulthood, Councilmember Torres would attend San José State University, run for local school boards and committees, and in November 2022 would become the first gay-latino Councilmember to sit on a City Council. As Councilmember, Omar continues his fight for improving schools, implementing affordable housing, enriching neighborhoods and parks, and bringing in new small businesses and fostering Downtown vibrancy in our District.