The Honorable Gina Ortiz Jones was sworn into office as San Antonio's 69th Mayor on June 18, 2025. Jones, a first-generation American raised by a single mother in San Antonio, was taught early on about the importance of service by her family. She graduated from John Jay High School and earned a four-year Air Force ROTC scholarship that took her to Boston University. Following graduation, Jones earned her commission and served as an intelligence officer in the Air Force. A veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Jones deployed to Camp Victory, Iraq to support close air support operations. Upon separating from the Air Force, she advised on military operations in Latin America and joined the Defense Intelligence Agency as an inaugural member of U.S. Africa Command in Stuttgart, Germany.
Jones went on to serve in the Executive Office of the President, leading portfolios at the intersection of economic and national security. In 2021, President Biden nominated Jones and the U.S. Senate unanimously confirmed her to serve as the 27th Under Secretary of the Air Force, the second-highest civilian leading the Department of the Air Force. For her service, she earned the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service, the department’s highest civilian award.
Jones serves on the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America Board of Directors, the Asian American Foundation Advisory Council and is a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Jones has advanced degrees from Boston University, the University of Kansas, and the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies.