Draft:Hector Carlos Lora

Hector Carlos Lora (born November 26, 1977) is an American-Dominican Independent politician and current Mayor of Passaic, New Jersey, United States. He is one of the approximately 2 dozen American-Dominican figures in government in the US.

Early life
Hector Carlos Lora was born on November 26, 1977, in St. Mary's General Hospital the city of Passaic, New Jersey in the United States. His parents are Dominican immigrants Alejandro and Maritza Lora, factory workers who also bore Manuel, Henry, Alex, Angela, and Rita Lora, all siblings to Hector.

Lora lived in Passaic for the entirety of his early life. He completed his early education career as a student to the Passaic Public Schools system in 1996 and later went on to enroll as a university student at the Stillman School of Business at Seton Hall University located in South Orange, NJ. He also obtained an Associate degree (Summa Cum Laude) from Passaic County Community College, and later a Bachelor's degree (Magna Cum Laude) from Liberty University.

Before beginning his career as a political figure, Lora assumed the position of Director of various Ancillary departments and Public Health and Patient Liaison within the Public Relations and Marketing department at St. Mary's Hospital in Passaic. He remained working there for fourteen years.

Political career
Lora's political career officially began in 2011, when he was elected as a Councilman in Passaic, NJ. He was then appointed as Passaic County Freeholder for a total amount of two times. He made history in Passaic County when, in 2015, he became the first American of Dominican heritage to become the Director of the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

In November 2016, the Passaic City Council elected Lora as interim Mayor of the city to complete former Mayor Blanco's term. He remained Interim Mayor until he won the position in the mayoral elections in May 2017, amassing a number of 4 to 1 votes against his closest rival with a total number of votes of 5,716.

Today, Lora remains as Mayor of his hometown in Passaic, NJ. He was re-elected to the office of Mayor in 2021, receiving 89% of the vote for his second term against two opponents He has been recognized by the Governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy, who in August 2020 nominated Lora to the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission.

Lora is married to Nicauris De Los Santos-Lora, who serves in the city of Clifton, NJ as a Registered Public Nurse. Together they have five sons, the youngest of whom was born June 9, 2020. Hector's eldest son is serving in the United States Marines Corps.