The Wolf Administration Wednesday announced Secretary of State Pedro Cortes submitted his resignation. Robert Torres, the current Executive Deputy Secretary, will act as the Interim Secretary of State.
No other explanation of the change was given.
In his role as Executive Deputy Secretary, Mr. Torres served as the lead deputy secretary for the Secretary of the Commonwealth, providing coordinated supervision of executive staff and managing the internal operation of the executive offices.
He advised the Secretary and supports the planning, coordination and management of program operations and the department’s external relationships.
Prior to his appointment, Mr. Torres worked at General Dynamics Information Technology, providing program management and business development services. He also previously served as vice president of Health Information Technology at Capital Blue Cross.
In prior state government service, Mr. Torres was appointed by Gov. Tom Corbett to serve as Pennsylvania’s Health Information Technology Coordinator. In this position, he provided leadership to help promote health information technology and advance health information exchange strategies in Pennsylvania.
His efforts helped to align over 100 healthcare stakeholders to achieve passage of Act 121 of 2012 that created the Pennsylvania eHealth Partnership Authority, a public/private authority.
Mr. Torres was also appointed by Gov. Ed Rendell to serve as Deputy Secretary for Administration at the Department of Health. In this role, he was responsible for contract administration, information technology, health research, statistics and vital records, human resources and management of the department's more than $900 million budget.
He was also assigned to manage and help improve the delivery of health, support and outreach services to families and children funded through the federal Maternal and Child Health programs.
Mr. Torres is an attorney who holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Pace University and a law degree from Widener University School of Law. He serves on the board of directors of various professional and community organizations, including the United Way of the Capital Region, the Wells Fargo Regional Foundation, the Health Information Management Systems Society and the Harrisburg Latino Hispanic American Community Center.
Mr. Torres resides in Dauphin County with his wife, Michele, and two children, Angelina and Aidan.
(Photo: Pedro Cortes, Robert Torres.)
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