Michael Masuda was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin to a middle class household with his parents and two brothers. His parents are Air Force veterans who worked on F-15 fighter jets at Holloman Air Force Base before settling down in Green Bay. He is the descendant of German and Polish Americans living in Northern Wisconsin on his mother’s side. He has fond memories learning to fish at his grandparents’ home on a small lake and swinging from the rope swing in the barn at the family farm. Michael’s paternal grandparents were Japanese Americans living in the San Francisco Bay Area before being forcibly relocated to the Topaz Internment Camp in Utah during World War II. After the war, they moved back to the Bay Area before moving to Amador County in the early 1970’s.
Michael moved to Amador County in 1999 at age 10 with his family after the passing of his grandfather. He spent his formative years in the back roads of Amador County with his parents, two brothers, two cousins, their dog, and Grandma Masuda right next door. He attended Sutter Creek Elementary, Ione Junior High, and Amador High School where he played basketball and baseball. During the summers in high school, Michael worked delivering ice cream for the Amador Creamery to stores throughout Amador, Calaveras, and Tuolumne Counties. In 2007, Michael left for Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo to pursue an electrical engineering degree. It was during this time that Michael met his wife-to-be, Brittany. They spent the first 4 years of their relationship long distance, traveling hours on weekends to spend time together. On a sunny, warm afternoon two days after Christmas 2014, on the hills behind Amador City, Michael proposed to Brittany and in 2015, they were married.
In the following years, they moved to Washington, DC to start their careers. Michael worked as an engineer at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory where he developed his appreciation for the role that technology plays in keeping American soldiers safe and ensuring the U.S. military remains the most capable in the world. In 2021, he was selected for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science and Technology Policy Fellowship and joined the Department of State as a civil servant. It was there that he grew to understand the role of diplomacy in protecting the American people, creating opportunities for American companies, and preventing conflict around the world. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Michael and Brittany did what so many other couples did: they adopted a COVID pup, Luna, and got to work having kids. They now have a 3 year old son and a 1 year old daughter who are the joy of their lives.
Michael’s values are rooted in Amador County and his 15 year relationship with Brittany. He strongly supports civil liberties. Growing up in small town Amador County, he learned the importance of serving your community and looking out for your neighbors. His parents instilled the importance of hard work in him throughout his youth, lessons that he carries forward to this day.
As an engineer, Michael has dedicated his life to solving problems. Rather than only addressing a problem’s symptoms, he tries to understand the cause and figure out how to solve it. He plans to bring that mentality to Congress so we can address the big problems like reducing the threat of wildfires, increasing access to affordable healthcare, investing in education for kids and young adults that prepares them for meaningful careers, and ensuring everyone has an opportunity to find a job that pays a living wage. Michael is here to work for the people of the 5th District.