Susan C. Lee was appointed Maryland Secretary of State on January 18, 2023. She previously served over 20 years in the Maryland General Assembly having been elected to the Senate in 2014 and to the House of Delegates in 2002 representing District 16. Lee was a leader in the General Assembly on cyber security and innovation, identity theft, online fraud, consumer protection, pay equity, and gun safety and laws to fight domestic violence, sexual assault, human and labor trafficking, child and senior abuse, and hate crimes. She also led efforts to promote bioscience, nanobiotechnology, telehealth, IT, and emerging technologies. Lee served as the Senate Majority Whip, Member of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee, Member of the Senate Executive Nominations Committee, Legislative Policy Committee, Joint Committee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology and Biotechnology, Governor’s Council on Family Violence, Workgroup to Study Safe Harbor Policy for Youth Victims of Human Trafficking, and Workgroup to Study Child Custody Proceedings Involving Child Abuse or Domestic Violence Allegations. She also served as the Co-Chair of the Maryland Cybersecurity Council Law & Policy Subcommittee, Co-Chair of the Maryland Commission on Cyber Security, Innovation and Excellence, Co-Chair of the Maryland Identity Theft Task Force, and Co-Chair of the Nanobiotechnology Task Force, and Member of the Council on Open Data, Maryland Student Privacy Council, State Advisory Board for Juvenile Services, State Advisory Board on Administrative Hearings, Task Force to Study Bicyc​le Safety on Maryland Highways, and Task Force to Study Recording Deeds for Victims of Domestic Violence. Lee was the first and past Chairman of the Maryland Legislative Asian American and Pacific Islander Caucus and past President of the Women Legislators of Maryland (Women’s Legislative Caucus). She also was a Member of the National Conference of State Legislatures Task Force on Immigration and Task Force on Cybersecurity and Member of the Communications, Technology & Interstate Commerce Committee, Member of the Maryland Council for New Americans, and a Presidential Elector. 

​Lee was the lead senate sponsor of the Maryland Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, True Freedom Act, and Anti-Exploitation Act and laws to ban ghost guns, require background checks on long gun sales, and to empower women, children, families, and all hardworking individuals. 

L​ee, an attorney, is the first Asian American elected to the Senate and Chinese American to the General Assembly. She is the daughter of a World War II veteran of the US Navy and retired Washington Post artist, and a product of the Montgomery County public schools, Leland Junior High School, Herbert Hoover Junior High, and Winston Churchill High School. She graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park and the University of San Francisco School of Law. Having served in both the public and private sectors, Lee was an attorney with the US Commission on Civil Rights and the US Patent and Trademark Office and Of Counsel with Gebhardt & Associates. She was appointed to serve on the United States Patent and Trademark Advisory Board during the Clinton Administration. Lee was a member of the Western Montgomery County Citizens Advisory Board, Jewish Foundation for Group Homes Board, Progressive Maryland, Co-Chair of the Montgomery County NAACP Multicultural Community Partnership, President of Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Greater Washington Area, and Board Member of the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies. She and her ​husband live in Bethesda.​

In 2024, Secretary Susan C. Lee was was inducted into the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame in honor of her achievements. To view the full list of Maryland women who have made unique and lasting contributions to the economic, political, cultural, and social life of the state click here​.

Contact

Email: dlPIO_sos@maryland.gov