5 Things to Know About Gina Ortiz Jones, the Trailblazing Fil-Am Mayor of San Antonio

Filipina, queer, a veteran—and now, the mayor of San Antonio, Texas. Here are five reasons Gina Ortiz’s win matters more than we think.

By Biel Arevalo July 24, 2025

Gina Ortiz Jones, the First Filipina and Gay Mayor of San Antonio, Texas

1. Raised by an Immigrant Single Mother

Ortiz Jones is the daughter of Victorina, a single parent, Ilocana immigrant, and former public school science teacher who left behind a stable career in Pangasinan in the ’70s for a shot at the American dream. That working-class reality shaped her early view of grit, sacrifice, and self-made service.

2. A Military Woman at Her Core

Gina Ortiz ROTC — ^{rotc field training days at Lackland Air Force Base, circa 2001}

The mayor earned her place in the ranks early, as a U.S. Air Force ROTC scholar at Boston University who later served as an intelligence officer in Iraq. There, she supported close air operations on the ground before continuing her national security career with the Defense Intelligence Agency and U.S. Africa Command. Her training was exacting, her work high-stakes.

3. First Out Lesbian and Woman of Color to Serve as Air Force Under Secretary

Gina Ortiz Jones — ^{27th under secretary of the air force, 2021 to 2023}

While the prestige of being an Air Force ROTC scholar was big, did you know that—due to the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that barred openly LGBTQIA people from the service—she had to stay closeted to keep it? Twenty years later, the policy is gone, and she’s back as Under Secretary of the U.S. Air Force: the first woman of color and first out lesbian to take the seat.

4. A Platform Focused on Equity

Forget the billion-dollar downtown arena. As mayor, Ortiz Jones is choosing children, classrooms, and community. She has pledged to expand Pre-K 4 SA to reach more three- and four-year-olds, and invest in more affordable housing, digital access, and practical support for public workers—shelving vanity projects while she’s at it. She’s kicking things off with a much-needed 100-day audit.

5. Three Firsts in the Mayoral Seat: Filipina, Openly Gay, and Woman of Color

Gina Ortiz Jones, she is only the third woman to lead san antonio — ^{she is only the third woman to lead san antonio}

With her win, Ortiz Jones is now the first Filipina, the first openly gay person, and the first woman of color to lead San Antonio—the seventh-largest city in the country. And that’s not business as usual. She got here by doing the work, pushing past the barriers, and refusing to shrink her being. She didn’t water herself down to make history. She did it by showing up fully formed.

Photos: LPAC, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, PEOPLE, and TEXAS TRIBUNE (via website)