Debbie Marquez

Debbie K. Marquez is a member of the Democratic National Committee from Colorado. A restaurant owner in Edwards, Colorado and past co-chair of the Eagle County Democratic Party, Marquez was elected to the DNC in 2004. As a superdelegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Marquez has publicly supported Barack Obama.

Biography

Born in Denver, Colorado, but raised in Los Angeles, California, from the age of 8, Marquez returned to Colorado in 1977 and worked in the hotel industry in Denver and Vail as a reservations manager.

After owning and operating a rafting company in Vail, Marquez entered the restaurant business, opening Fiesta's New Mexican Cantina in Edwards, Colorado in 1989. She currently owns and operates the a Mexican restaurant with her sister — their speciality is chicken enchiladas in a creamy jalapeño sauce. Marquez has served as vice president of the Vail Valley Chapter of the Colorado Restaurant Association. She has also been a member of the Colorado Mountain College Latino Advisory Committee, and Vail/Eagle Campus Dean Advisory Committee. Marquez has one daughter, Isabella Francesca.

As a Democratic Party supporter, beginning in Vail in the 1980s, Marquez was elected to posts as a precinct committeeperson, treasurer, and three terms as co-chair for the Eagle County Democratic Party. She was an alternate delegate for Al Gore to the 2000 Democratic National Convention and was elected to the Democratic National Committee in 2004. She is a member of the DNC's Hispanic Caucus, and stood for reelection to a second term on the DNC at the May 2008 Colorado Democratic Party state convention as one of seven candidate for Colorado's three DNC seats.

Marquez occasionally blogs at SquareState.net under the username "greenchiledem." In 2007, Marquez publicly called for the impeachment of U.S. President George W. Bush. She is also the treasurer for the 2008 Congressional campaign of Jared Polis in Colorado's 2nd congressional district.

As a member of the Democratic National Committee, she is a superdelegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention. In October 2007, she announced her intention to vote for New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, but, after he withdrew from the race, she endorsed Illinois Sen. Barack Obama. Her endorsement came shortly before Colorado's February caucuses and despite personal lobbying from former president Bill Clinton. In April 2008, with nine primary contests remaining, Marquez publicly urged undeclared superdelegates to publicly state their presidential preferences.

Following the convention in August, Marquez was named to the Colorado Latino Advisory Council for Obama's campaign; during the campaign, she hosted bilingual rallies supporting Obama for Latino voters.

External links

• DebbieMarquez.com - DNC campaign website
• BBC video of Marquez