Ben Ray Luján was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 1972 and was raised in Nambé as the son of a union ironworker and public school employee. He earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from New Mexico Highlands University in 2007. Before serving in the Senate, Luján worked as director of administrative services and CFO of the New Mexico Cultural Affairs Department. He was elected to the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission in 2004, served in the U.S. House representing New Mexico's 3rd congressional district from 2009 to 2020 (where he became assistant House speaker), and was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2020 with 51.73% of the vote, becoming the first Hispanic to represent New Mexico in the Senate in over 40 years. He is also one of only two Head Start graduates to serve in the Senate.
Luján comes from a political family in rural New Mexico. His father served as a county commissioner and state legislator, while his mother was a public school employee. He worked as a blackjack dealer at a tribal casino before pursuing higher education. Before entering Congress, he worked in government administration and served on the state Public Regulation Commission. In the House, he became the highest-ranking Hispanic in Congress as assistant House speaker and served as chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in 2014, leading Democrats to a House majority in 2018. He suffered a stroke in January 2022 but recovered fully by April and has continued his Senate work.