biography

Named by Hispanic Magazine as among the top Latinas in Government and

Politics, Maria Teresa Petersen is the founding Executive Director of Voto Latino. 

Voto Latino is a youth organization engaging the next generation of Americans in civic participation. Under Maria Teresa's leadership, Voto Latino launched the first ever national mobile texting campaign to register voters in 2006, has produced award winning Public Service Announcements, created the Artist Coalition of over 35 active celebrity voices, and has created a media coalition that includes MySpace, YouTube, iTunes Latino, SiTV, LATV and MTV. 

Prior to Voto Latino, Maria Teresa founded Petersen Advisory and served as a political consultant to clients including: Bayer Pharmaceuticals, National Latino Council of Alcohol and Tobacco Prevention, Mickey Ibarra & Associates, and AT&T. She started her career as a Legislative Aide for former Democratic Caucus Chairman Vic Fazio managing international trade issues and appropriations. 

In addition to serving as a frequent guest on Chris Matthew’s Hardball, Maria Teresa appears on CNBC, NPR, CNN Español, and Fox News as a political analyst. She serves as a frequent guest speaker at national conferences focusing on social entrepreneurship and Latino issues. 

Maria Teresa is a Woodrow Wilson Public Policy International Affairs Fellow, a National

Hispana Leadership Institute Fellow, an Advisory Board member of the Hispanic Heritage Foundation and a founding board member of the Latino Leader's Network. Maria Teresa holds a Masters from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and a Bachelors from University California, Davis in international economics.