News & Commentary written by Elvia Montoya

Elvia Montoya is the Deputy National Director for Policy and Government Affairs at the ACLU, bringing more than a decade of experience in legislative strategy and government affairs. In this role, she helps lead a team of policy experts and advances strategic planning initiatives, providing counsel to senior leadership and supporting staff in advancing policy at the federal, state, and local levels.
Before joining the ACLU, Elvia served on the Port of Portland’s senior leadership team as Federal Affairs Manager, where she led all federal advocacy efforts for the Port’s three airports and four marine terminals. She represented the Port in national and regional coalitions, with Congress, and federal agencies on a wide range of policy issues. Previously, she served on Capitol Hill as Legislative Director to U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), managing a 17-person policy team, developing legislative strategy, leading strategic planning efforts, and advising on democracy reforms and Senate rules and procedure. She earlier served as the Senator’s top advisor on health, education, and LGBTQ policy. During her tenure in the Senate, she spearheaded nursing education legislation that was enacted into law, reinstated a summer meal program for low-income children in Oregon, and partnered with stakeholders to halt the merger of a Medicaid organization with a private insurer that would have restricted access to reproductive, gender-affirming, and end-of-life care.
Earlier in her career, Elvia worked for Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) and on Oregon state legislative campaigns and voter registration initiatives. She holds a B.A. in Political Science and Spanish from the University of Portland.