News
Marcia L. Fudge
- E mfudge@taftlaw.com
- T (216) 706-3993
- F (216) 241-3707
Summary
Marcia is a partner in Taft’s Public Affairs Strategies Group and serves as firmwide Chair of Public Policy. She brings more than five decades of experience working with lawmakers, elected officials, key staff, and coalitions at the local, state, and federal levels. From 2021 to 2024, she served as the 18th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). During her tenure, Marcia led initiatives to increase housing supply, eradicate the growing homelessness issue, end discriminatory practices in the housing market, and ensure compliance with fair housing rules.
From 2008 to 2021, Marcia was the U.S. representative for the 11th Congressional District of Ohio. She was a member of several Congressional Caucuses and past Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. As a member of Congress, Marcia earned a reputation of tackling the unique challenges of her district by working with her congressional delegation and across political ideologies.
In 1999, she was elected the first female and first African American mayor of Warrensville Heights, Ohio, a position she held for two terms. As mayor of Warrensville Heights, Ohio, she adopted one of the first vacant and abandoned property ordinances in the state. She worked with local officials to develop a taskforce to protect against predatory lending and she secured the inclusion of property maintenance grants in the Warrensville Revitalization Action Plan. Additionally, she brought new residential development to the city and addressed the city’s growing foreclosure crisis through the formation of a local partnership that helped residents maintain the financial security needed to buy or keep a home.
Marcia’s career in public service began in the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, where she rose to the rank of Director of Budget and Finance.
She earned her bachelor’s degree in business from The Ohio State University and law degree from the Cleveland State University Cleveland-Marshall School of Law. She is a past national president of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and a member of its Greater Cleveland Alumnae Chapter.
Marcia is licensed to practice law in Ohio only.
Awards
Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient, “Who’s Who in Black Cleveland” (2024)
Recipient, Beth Newburger Schwartz Award (2024)
All Service Areas
Education
- Cleveland State University College of Law (1983)
- The Ohio State University (1975)
Admissions
- State - Ohio
News
Taft Partner Marcia Fudge Elected to Cleveland Clinic Board of Trustees News
Fudge Speaks at Democratic National Convention News
Fudge Receives "Who’s Who In Black Cleveland" Lifetime Achievement Award News
Fudge Featured on NBC's Morning Joe Newscast
Professional Affiliations
- Kamala Harris for President
Presidential Campaign Co-Chair (2024)
Community Involvement
- Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Past National President
Member, Greater Cleveland Alumnae Chapter