Marianna Sotomayor is a well-known journalist who covers the House of Representatives for The Washington Post. She reports on the Democratic and Republican leadership, as well as the ideological, cultural and personality-based tensions that shape the policy and political debates on Capitol Hill. She joined The Post in 2021 after working for five years at NBC News, where she covered Congress and Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.
But many people wonder if she has any connection to another famous Sotomayor: Sonia Sotomayor, the Supreme Court Associate Justice who was appointed by Barack Obama in 2009. Sonia Sotomayor is the first Hispanic and Latina member of the Court, and the third woman to serve as a justice. She is known for her liberal views and her advocacy for civil rights, women’s rights and criminal justice reform.
The answer is no
According to several sources, such as Showbizcorner, Mixedarticle and ABTC, Marianna Sotomayor and Sonia Sotomayor are not related by blood or by marriage. They share a common surname that originates from Spain, but they do not have any known ancestors or relatives in common.
Sotomayor is a Spanish surname that means “mayor of Soto”, a common place name derived from the Latin word “saltus”, meaning “forest” or “grove”. It is possible that both Marianna and Sonia have distant ancestors who lived in or near a forested area and adopted the surname Sotomayor.
However, there is no evidence that they are directly descended from the same branch of the Sotomayor family. Marianna was born and raised in Washington, D.C., to parents who are both doctors: Maria Gavancho Sotomayor and Eduardo Sotomayor. She also has a brother named Eduardo Jr. Sonia was born and raised in the Bronx, New York, to parents who were immigrants from Puerto Rico: Juan Sotomayor and Celina Báez. She also has a brother named Juan Jr.
Professional respect and admiration
Although Marianna Sotomayor and Sonia Sotomayor are not related, they do acknowledge each other’s presence and achievements in their respective fields. They have a professional respect and admiration for each other, but they are not likely to know each other personally.
Marianna has occasionally mentioned Sonia in her tweets, such as when she congratulated her for receiving an honorary degree from Yale University in 2013, or when she shared a video of her speaking at an event in 2019. Sonia has not publicly commented on Marianna’s work, but she may be aware of her reporting on Congress and the White House.
Marianna Sotomayor is one of the many journalists who share a surname with a prominent figure in politics, law or entertainment. For example, there are Chris Cuomo (CNN anchor) and Andrew Cuomo (New York governor), Jake Tapper (CNN anchor) and Abigail Tapper (actress), Savannah Guthrie (NBC anchor) and Woody Guthrie (folk singer), etc. These coincidences do not imply any familial ties, but they do spark curiosity and interest among the public.
