María de Lourdes Santiago

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María de Lourdes Santiago Negrón is a Puerto Rican lawyer and politician from Adjuntas. She is the current vice-president of the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) and in 2004 became the first woman from that party to be elected into the Senate in the history of Puerto Rico.<ref name=entrev>Template:Cite journal</ref> She currently serves as Senator at-large at the Puerto Rico Senate after being elected in 2020 with the most votes of any candidate.<ref>Template:Cite web Archived.</ref> She was re-elected in 2024.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Biographical facts

Santiago Negrón was born in Adjuntas<ref name="auto">Hon. María de Lourdes Santiago. Senate of Puerto Rico. Accessed February 13, 2018.</ref> on November 13, 1968,<ref name="auto1">Perfil de María de Lourdes Santiago Negrón, Senador(a). ENData Legislativo. El Nuevo Dia. Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. Accessed February 13, 2018.</ref> to Ernesto Santiago and Haydée Negrón.<ref name="auto2">María de Lourdes Santiago. Partido Independentista Puertorriqueño. September 19, 2010. Accessed February 13, 2018.</ref> After graduating from high school in Adjuntas in 1986, she earned a bachelor's degree in theatre and a Juris Doctor from the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras.<ref name="auto1"/>

Career

From 1997 to 2000, she worked as a legal counsel for Victor García San Inocencio while he served in the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico, and for Manuel Rodríguez Orellana and Fernando Martín García while they served as Senators.<ref name="auto"/>

In January 2001, she was elected as vice-president of her political party, and in 2003 announced her candidacy as Senator for the Puerto Rico General Elections of 2004. On November 2, 2004, Santiago was elected, becoming the first woman to represent the Puerto Rican Independence Party in Puerto Rico's Senate.<ref name="auto"/>

As a senator, Santiago has been involved in women's, mental health and special education issues, among others.<ref name="auto2"/>

Santiago is the writer of a column that is published in the El Vocero newspaper. She was arrested during the Navy-Vieques protests for illegally trespassing military facilities to protest the United States military's bombing practice in Vieques. She spent one month in jail as part of her sentence.<ref name="auto2"/>

Personal life

Santiago Negrón has one son.<ref name="auto2"/>

References

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External links

Template:25th Senate of Puerto Rico

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