Catherine Cortez Masto
DemocratU.S. Senator, NV| Age | 62 (b. 1964-03-29) |
| Gender | Female |
| In office since | 2017-01-03 (~9 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | Hispanic/Latina; father of Mexican American descent (grandfather from Chihuahua), mother of Italian ancestry; first Latina and first Mexican American woman in the U.S. Senate |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Education | B.S. in Finance, University of Nevada, Reno (1986); J.D., Gonzaga University School of Law (1990) |
| Prior occupation | Attorney (civil litigator and federal criminal prosecutor for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington, D.C.); chief of staff to Nevada Gov. Bob Miller; Executive Vice Chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education; assistant county manager of Clark County; Nevada Attorney General |
| Military service | No |
| Birthplace | Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Languages | English; understands some Spanish but does not speak it fluently |
| Marital status | Married — Paul Masto (retired U.S. Secret Service special agent) |
| Residence | Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Notable relatives | Father Manny Cortez, a Las Vegas attorney who headed the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and served on the Clark County Commission; longtime ally of Sen. Harry Reid |
Pending research: children · openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 2016 |
| Previous offices | Nevada Attorney General (32nd), 2007-2015 · Executive Vice Chancellor, Nevada System of Higher Education (2003-2006) · Assistant county manager, Clark County, Nevada · Chief of staff to Nevada Governor Bob Miller |
| Committees | Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (ranking member, Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection) · Energy and Natural Resources · Finance · Indian Affairs |
| Caucuses | Congressional Hispanic Caucus · Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus · Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues |
| Leadership | Chair, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), 2019-2021 · Outreach Vice Chair, Senate Democratic Caucus |
| Ideology | Voted in line with President Biden's stated position about 96% of the time; generally regarded as a centrist/establishment Democrat. Heritage Action 119th Congress scorecard: 0%. |
| Signature legislation | STRONG Veterans Act (veterans' mental health package) · Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act · Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation Water Rights Settlement Act · HOME Act (HOME Investment Partnerships reauthorization) · PRICE Act (manufactured housing communities) |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed + (2018) · estimate
| Town & Country Bank (deposit) | other · –$5,000,000 · 2025 |
| Nevada Public Employees' Retirement System | other · –$500,000 · 2025 |
| Clark County Credit Union (deposit) | other · –$250,000 · 2025 |
| Oakmark Select I (OAKLX) mutual fund | fund · –$250,000 · 2025 |
| Vanguard Institutional Index (VINIX) fund | fund · –$250,000 · 2025 |
Scandals & crimes ledger
No recorded incidents. Under the adjudicated-only methodology, an entry appears only when a court or official body has formally acted and the record is cited.