Rita Mendes is an American state legislator serving in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
[1] Mendes was born in Brazil and immigrated to the United States when she was 12 years old.
[2] She graduated from Brockton High School and later attended Massasoit Community College where she earned her Associates degree.
She went on to receive her Bachelor's degree from the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth and her Juris Doctor from the New England School of Law.
[2] In 2022, after United States President Joe Biden named Claire Cronin ambassador to Ireland, Mendes announced her run for the vacant Massachusetts House of Representatives' 11th Plymouth district.