Omar Vargas is the Vice President, Head of Global Public Policy at General Motors (GM). In this role, he leads GM’s global engagement of government officials and public policy.

Prior to joining GM in August of 2021, Omar held senior government relations roles with 3M, Praxair, and PepsiCo. In the early 2000s, Omar was as an appointee of President George W. Bush to the U.S. Department of Justice, where he served in a variety of capacities. His portfolio included a broad range of law enforcement, civil rights, national security, and immigration policy matters, including violence against women and human trafficking victim services programs. His government service was preceded by work at Cooper & Kirk, PLLC, the U.S. Court of International Trade, and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

In 1998, He earned a J.D. from American University Washington College of Law and an M.A. from the School of International Service at American University. In 1995, Seton Hall University conferred a B.A. in Political Science and Spanish Literature and awarded Omar the University’s Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Medal of Honor, in recognition of his academic achievements and community leadership. Omar attended Seton Hall through the University’s Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Scholarship, a full academic scholarship intended to honor and promote the memory of the slain national leader.

Omar is committed to various philanthropic efforts outside of his professional work. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Economic Club of Washington, D.C. and Co-chairs their Membership Committee. Additionally, Omar is a member of the Board of the Business Council for International Understanding and the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute. Previously, he held various board positions including Meridian Center’s Corporate Advisory Board, the Fiscal Note Executive Institute Advisory Board, the Fords Theater Board of Trustees, the Hispanic National Bar Association Legal Education Fund, the Deuville Building Relief Fund, and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.

Omar’s volunteerism with community-based organizations and advocacy on behalf of asylum seekers has earned him recognition by the New Jersey State Assembly and the Washington College of Law. He has also earned recognition from the University of New Mexico School of Law U.S.-Mexico Law Institute, the Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia, the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility, Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the National Institute on Lobbying and Ethics (2020 Top Lobbyist), The Hill (2019-2023 Top Lobbyist), and Washingtonian Magazine (2022, 2023 Most Influential).