Lourdes Barroso de Padilla

In November of 2021, Lourdes Barroso de Padilla made history by becoming the first Latina to be elected as a member of the Columbus City Council. She is a bilingual, first-generation Cuban-American who was born and raised on the eastside of Columbus.

In her role on Council, Lourdes works to bring equity and pride to all residents. In 2022, Barroso de Padilla founded Columbus’ first ever Latino Heritage Month Parade and Festival. She also created the Latino Heritage Month committee that plans and holds events to celebrate Latino cultures. In 2023, she spear-headed legislation to level the playing field for pay equity and prevent employers from asking applicants about their salary history.

This year, Councilmember Barroso de Padilla will chair the Public Service & Transportation committee and will vice-chair the Economic Development & Small Business committee. Outside of her work at Council, Barroso de Padilla has an extensive background in youth development and leadership. Barroso de Padilla has spent three decades working to improve the lives of kids through education with her work at City Year.

Barroso de Padilla currently serves on the Board for Ella, formerly the Latina Mentoring Academy, a unique professional development and mentoring program for Latinas in Central Ohio that now has hundreds of graduates.

Currently in addition to Council, she serves as Vice Chair of MORPC’s Regional Policy Roundtable, is a member of the New Leader’s Council Advisory Board, and is a Greater Columbus Arts Council board member. She resides with her husband, Ernesto, and daughters, Eva and Valentina in Eastmoor.