Cynthia M. Mendes (born June 14, 1980) is an American politician who formerly served as a member of the Rhode Island Senate from the 18th district.

[2] She earned an associate degree in social sciences from the Community College of Rhode Island.

She defeated incumbent William Conley Jr. in the Democratic primary in what The Boston Globe deemed as an upset victory.

During the race, Mendes expressed support for having abortions covered by Medicaid and state insurance, but was later criticized for anti-abortion social media posts from 2014 to 2015.

Registered as a Republican in East Providence until 2016, Mendes later wrote in "libertarian" in an election, and in 2019 switched affiliations to the Democratic Party.