Joseline A. Peña-Melnyk

Joseline A. Peña-Melnyk is a Democratic member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing District 21 since assuming office in 2007. An attorney by profession, she was born in the Dominican Republic in 1966. Her legal career includes serving as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. Prior to her state-level service, Peña-Melnyk was a member of the College Park City Council from 2003 to 2006. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in criminal justice from Buffalo State College and a Juris Doctor from the University at Buffalo School of Law. In December 2025, she was unanimously elected Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates, becoming the first immigrant and the first Afro-Latina to hold the position in Maryland's history.