Vanna Howard

Born in Cambodia, Howard's father, siblings, and grandparents were killed by the Khmer Rouge in the Cambodian genocide. After fleeing Cambodia in 1979, Howard, along with her mother and stepfather, resettled in a refugee camp and two years later, in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston. She recalls her early days in the United States, while she learned English, as "very lonely."[1]

Howard attended the University of Massachusetts Boston and moved to Lowell in 1991 when she was hired as a bilingual legal secretary.[1]

Howard served on the staff of Congresswoman Niki Tsongas from 2008 to 2019, first as a constituent services representative and later as regional director for the Greater Lowell area.[2]

In 2020, Howard sought the Democratic nomination for the 17th Middlesex District of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. She defeated the eleven term incumbent David Nangle, who had been indicted on federal fraud charges, and won the general election unopposed.[3][4]

Howard is the first Khmer woman to serve in the Massachusetts General Court. In 2023, a resolution sponsored by Howard to recognize Cambodian Genocide Remembrance Day was adopted by the House.[5]

• 2021–2022 Massachusetts legislature