Fiona Ma, a Democrat and licensed CPA, is the 34th Treasurer of California, having taken office on January 7, 2019 after winning election in November 2018 with the most votes ever cast for a candidate for the office in state history. She was reelected in 2022 and her current term runs through January 2027; she is a declared candidate for California Lieutenant Governor in 2026.
Ma’s path to statewide office ran through San Francisco and Sacramento. She served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors from 2002 to 2006, then represented California’s 12th Assembly District from 2006 to 2012, rising to Assembly Speaker pro Tempore. She went on to serve on the California State Board of Equalization from 2014 to 2019. She holds a B.S. in accounting from the Rochester Institute of Technology, a master’s in taxation from Golden Gate University, and an MBA from Pepperdine University.
As Treasurer, Ma oversees an investment portfolio averaging roughly $165 billion, serves as the state’s agent of sale for all state bonds, and her office reports handling approximately $3 trillion in annual banking transactions. She chairs the California Pollution Control Financing Authority and sits on the boards of CalPERS and CalSTRS, the nation’s two largest public pension funds, along with several other state financing authorities tied to the office.
In 2021, former state tax official Judith Blackwell sued Ma alleging sexual harassment during shared work-travel accommodations, along with racial discrimination and wrongful termination. A Sacramento judge dismissed the discrimination and wrongful-termination claims but allowed the harassment claim to proceed. In August 2024, the State of California agreed to pay Blackwell $350,000 to settle the case before it reached trial; no jury ruled on the underlying allegations. Ma has denied all claims, calling the lawsuit “frivolous” and describing the settlement as vindication.
