Lisa Middleton
Board Member
Position
Governor Appointee, Insurance Industry Representative
Profile
Lisa Middleton was appointed to the CalPERS Board of Administration by Governor Newsom in September 2025, as the representative for the insurance industry.
She was previously served on the CalPERS Board of Administration, as the representative for local government elected officials from 2019-2024 as a member of the Palm Springs City Council.
Middleton first earned a seat on the Palm Springs City Council in 2017 and won her re-election bid in 2020. During her time on the council, she served as the city’s mayor in 2021 and 2022.
Prior to her election, Lisa served as a member of the Palm Springs Planning Commission and as chairwoman of the Organized Neighborhoods of Palm Springs. She is a member of the board of directors of the Equality California Institute and the Desert LGBTQ Center. In 2014 she was the Center's interim executive director.
Lisa retired after serving 36 years with California's State Compensation Insurance Fund. At her retirement she was the senior vice president of Internal Affairs with executive responsibility for internal audits, fraud investigation, public records, and governance. Lisa was also a member of California's Fraud Assessment Commission, which she chaired in 2010.
She earned a bachelor's degree in political science and holds a master's degree in public administration from the University of Southern California. She also completed the LGBT Leadership Institute program through the University of California, Los Angeles, Anderson School of Management. Lisa is the first transgender person elected to a non-judicial office in the State of California.