Rubén Marinelarena Gallego, born November 20, 1979, is a Democratic congressman representing Arizona’s 7th congressional district.

Gallego was born in Chicago, and is a first-generation American, with a Colombian mother and a Mexican father. Along with his three sisters, he was raised by a single mother. The family eventually moved to Evergreen Park, Illinois, and he graduated from Evergreen Park Community High School. Gallego attended Harvard College, where he became a member of Sigma Chi, and earned a B.A. in international relations.

After college, Gallego joined the Marines. After completing School of Infantry (SOI) training, he deployed to Iraq with Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment. The 3/25 lost 46 Marines and two Navy corpsmen between January 2005 and January 2006. Gallego's best friend died during combat operations in Iraq.

Gallego’s desire to help fellow combat veterans motivated him to get involved in politics. In 2009, he served as the Chief of Staff for District 7 City Phoenix City Councilman Michael Nowakowski before he was elected vice chair of the Arizona Democratic Party. The next year, he was elected to the Arizona State House, representing Arizona District 16.

In 2011, The Arizona Republic named Gallego a distinguished freshman lawmaker. His first successful bill granted in-state tuition status to veterans residing in Arizona. Gallego supports the repeal of Arizona SB 1070. He considers education Arizona's most important long-term priority.  In 2012, Gallego was elected assistant minority leader.

On February 27, 2014, Gallego announced his candidacy for Congress in Arizona’s 7th congressional district. Although not required to give up his seat under Arizona's resign-to-run laws (since he was in the final year of his state House term), Gallego resigned from the Arizona House in March 2014. 

Mayday PAC, a super PAC seeking to reduce the role of money in politics, announced its endorsement of Gallego because of his evolution on the issue of campaign finance reform. On February 28, 2013, Gallego voted against an amendment that sought to raise campaign finance limits for federal candidates and abolish all limits for state candidates, HB 2523. He has since been a vocal supporter of the Government By the People Act. 

Gallego won a five-way Democratic primary—the real contest in this heavily Democratic, majority-Latino district—with 48.9% of the vote. He won the general election with 74% of the vote. He has been reelected three times, never dropping below 70% of the vote. He faced only a green candidate in 2018 and defeated nominal Republican challengers in 2016 and 2020. Considered a progressive politician, Gallego has been encouraged by several left-wing organizations to run for Senate in the 2024 election against incumbent Kyrsten Sinema.

Gallego supports the full legalization of marijuana. He supports cap and trade legislation, carbon taxes, and increasing funding for renewable, clean energy. 

Gallego opposed the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade, describing the decision as “rolling back women's rights”. Gallego opposed the building of the Rosemont mine in Arizona, saying it would have a “devastating” environmental impact. He has sponsored efforts to require operators of public water systems to report when lead is found in water. He supports gun buyback programs. He also supports Obamacare and opposed its attempted repeal.

Gallego supported efforts to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell. He opposes efforts to deport undocumented immigrants while they wait to be eligible for citizenship. He has co-sponsored efforts to require lawyers for children who are at risk of being deported. Gallego opposes the privatization of Social Security. He also opposes allowing people to put Social Security taxes in personal retirement accounts. As of October 2021, Gallego had voted in line with Joe Biden’s stated position 100% of the time.

Congressman Gallego is a member and former First Vice Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, a Vice Chair of the LGBT Equality Caucus, and a Democratic Caucus Assistant Whip.

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