María Teresa Kumar facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
María Teresa Kumar
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Kumar 2017
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| Born |
María Teresa Petersen
1974 (age 51–52) |
| Education | University of California, Davis John F. Kennedy School of Government |
| Occupation | Political activist, CEO and President of Voto Latino |
| Spouse(s) | Raj Kumar |
María Teresa Kumar (born María Teresa Petersen in 1974) is a Colombian American activist. She works to help people get involved in politics. She is the President and CEO of an organization called Voto Latino.
In 2013, Elle Magazine named her one of the ten most important women in Washington, D.C.. In 2017, Hispanic Business said she was one of the 100 most influential Latinos in America. She also interviewed President Joe Biden before the 2024 presidential election.
Early Life and School
María Teresa Kumar was born in Bogotá, Colombia, in 1974. She grew up in Sonoma, California. When she was young, she spent her summers visiting Colombia.
Kumar went to the University of California, Davis. There, she earned a degree in International Relations. Later, she got a Master's degree in Public Policy. She studied at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Her Work
Kumar started her career working for a politician named Vic Fazio. She helped him with laws and other tasks. While studying at Harvard University, she realized how important technology could be. She saw it could help make things more fair for Latino communities.
In 2004, she began working with Voto Latino. This group is based in Washington, D.C. Voto Latino uses marketing and technology. Their goal is to encourage Latinos to take part in the political process.
At first, Voto Latino focused on helping Latinos in the U.S. register to vote. Later, they worked with the U.S. Census Bureau. They helped more people participate in the 2010 United States census. To share their message, Voto Latino and MTV's Latino channel, Tr3s, created public service announcements. They also used social media and a network of bloggers.
Kumar and her team also started the 'Be Counted' campaign. This campaign included a phone app that worked in two languages. It allowed Latinos to fill out the 2010 census on their phones. The organization also helps Latinos understand and use the health exchanges. These are part of the Affordable Care Act.
Under Kumar's leadership, Voto Latino helped register over 500,000 new Latino voters. In June 2018, the group announced a new goal. They planned to register one million voters by 2020. They also planned to spend $7 million on this project.
Kumar is also a senior fellow at the Kettering Foundation. This is a research group in America that does not support any one political party.
Awards and Recognition
In 2010, Kumar was nominated for an Emmy Award. This was for her role as co-creator and host of a TV special. The show was called Beyond Borderlines and aired on MSNBC. It was a two-hour program.
This show was the first English-speaking town hall meeting on TV. It focused on issues important to Latinos in the United States. It also looked at the growing role of Latinos in politics.
In 2013, Elle Magazine named Kumar one of the ten most influential women in Washington D.C.. In 2017, Hispanic Business recognized her. They named her among the 100 most influential Latinos in America.
She was also honored by the National Women's History Alliance in 2020.
