Sectors: Policy, Politics and Governance. Arthur Torres (born 1946) is a former United States Democratic Party state senator. He is the Vice Chair of the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee, the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). CIRM, established in 2005 following the passage of Proposition 71, is charged with allocating US$3 billion to California universities and research institutions to support and advance stem cell research. He is a colon cancer survivor and serves on the Board as a patient advocate. Torres served as the Chairman of the California Democratic Party from 1996 to 2009. He was the first Latino in the California Democratic Party to have been nominated for statewide office when he won the Democratic primary for insurance commissioner in 1994. He is openly gay. He is the father of a son and daughter.