City Council - Rhonda Bolton
Rhonda Bolton, Council Member
Rhonda Bolton - Council Member
Councilmember Rhonda M. Bolton was appointed to the Huntington Beach City Council in July 2021, filling the vacancy left by a resigning Councilmember.
Councilmember Bolton began her public service career as a legislative aide to a Member of the United States House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. She attended law school after her Congressional service, and joined an AmLaw 100 firm where she spent fifteen years in private practice. Her work for the firm primarily focused on federal public policy, government relations, and regulatory matters.
Over the course of her career Ms. Bolton had the privilege of working to shape many landmark laws such as the Affordable Care Act and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. In addition, litigated dozens of cases at the federal district and appellate court levels regarding the interpretation of federal statutes and the scope of federal regulatory authority.
While at the law firm, Ms. Bolton also became involved in work to support junior attorneys, helping to place them on the path toward success in challenging, large law firm environments. This work led to her involvement in heading up the firm’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, and her expertise in this area led to her being tapped by a firm client, Kia Motors America, Inc., to develop and lead the company’s inaugural DEI initiative.
After four years of helming an award-winning DEI and corporate philanthropy program for Kia, Ms. Bolton established the nationwide DEI consultancy IncludeMe LLC. The consultancy presently serves corporations across sectors, professional service firms, government agencies and non-profit organizations, guiding senior leaders in developing and executing strategies to build teams that maximize innovation, efficiency and employee engagement.
Councilmember Bolton devotes her “free” time to work with several non-profits supporting higher education and economic opportunity for under-represented students, reflecting her passion for equity and liberty for all people. Prior to her City Council appointment, she was appointed in January 2020 to the city’s Human Relations Task Force.
Councilmember Bolton holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of Houston, and a Juris Doctor degree from the College of William and Mary School of Law. She lives in southeast Huntington Beach where she does her most important work of all – caring for her family.
Did you know?
Since its inception in 2016, the Homeless Task Force has had more than 1,600 occasions to assist individuals with housing referrals, mental and physical health referrals, bus passes, DMV forms, gas cards, food, mailing addresses, and family reunifications
