Nan got her start in politics through the Civil Rights Movement. She stepped into the Movement when she stepped into the streets on Aug. 28, 1963 to join the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. She went on to work for SNCC in Atlanta and Mississippi, led a community civil rights project in Virginia's Black Belt counties, helped launch an alternative newspaper and joined women's empowerment efforts in Atlanta. Before running for office, she worked seventeen years for Nabisco and was active in the Bakery, Confectionery, and Tobacco Union.

Nan has lived in Ormewood Park for 30 years. She has two grown sons, Danny and Jesse, who attended Atlanta Public Schools, graduating from Grady High School.

Nan is a member of the Unitarian-Universalist Congregation of Atlanta.  She graduated with a B.A. in English from Mary Washington College of the University of Virginia.

Legislative Service

Senator Nan Orrock was elected to the Georgia Senate in 2006, following her service in the House of Representatives for two decades. During her tenure in the House, she was elected as the first woman to hold the position of majority whip. She also served as the Governor’s Floor Leader, a member of the Speakers Policy Committee and a committee chair.

Sen. Orrock is vice-chair of the Interstate Cooperation Committee and serves on the Higher Education, Urban Affairs, Health and Human Services, Science and Technology and Agriculture and Consumer Affairs committees.

Her legislative expertise encompasses health policy, women’s issues, civil rights and civil liberties, workforce issues and the environment. She is a founder of both the Georgia Legislative Women’s Caucus and the Working Families Caucus, and has been recognized for her contributions by a wide array of organizations.

Sen. Orrock’s engagement on public policy issues dates back to her participation in the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, an experience that has led to a lifetime of activism and shaped her strong commitment to bringing the voices of women and other disenfranchised groups into the public arena.

Sen. Orrock is the president of Women Legislators’ Lobby, a national network of progressive women legislators who advocate for federal policies to reduce wasteful military spending and to improve the underfunded services to families, children, the disabled and the elderly. Her board service includes the Sapelo Foundation, the Center for Policy Alternatives and the Institute of Energy and Environmental Research. She is an advisory council member of SCLC/W.O.M.E.N, former executive director of the Fund for Southern Communities and a member of the Bakery Confectionery and Tobacco Workers International Union.