Héctor Ferrer
| Héctor J. Ferrer Ríos | |
|---|---|
| Minority Leader of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico | |
|
In office January 2, 2005 – March 15, 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Aníbal Vega Borges |
| Succeeded by | Luis Raúl Torres Cruz |
| President of the Popular Democratic Party | |
|
In office December 2008 – 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Aníbal Acevedo Vilá |
| Succeeded by | Alejandro García Padilla |
| Majority Whip of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico | |
|
In office January 2, 2001 – January 1, 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Iris M. Ruiz Class |
| Succeeded by | María L. Ramos Rivera |
| Member of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico from the 29th District | |
|
In office January 2, 2001 – January 1, 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Luis Aramburu Díaz |
| Succeeded by | Pedro Cintrón Rodríguez |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
March 27, 1970 San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Political party |
Popular Democratic Party Democratic Party |
| Domestic partner |
Elisa Hernández (divorced) Jennifer Cortés |
Héctor J. Ferrer Ríos[lower-alpha 1] (born March 27, 1970) is a Puerto Rican politician and attorney. He served as a legislator in the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico from 2001 to 2012 for three consecutive terms. He was also president of the Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico (PPD) from 2008 to 2011.[1]
Early life
Ferrer was born on March 27, 1970 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He received a sports scholarship in baseball to study at the University of North Carolina. There, he received a Bachelor's degree with a major in Economics and Industrial Relations. He then received a Juris doctor from the School of Law of the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. In March 1997, he was one of the top 10 grades at the bar exam.[2]
After graduating, Ferrer worked as a private attorney.
Political career
Ferrer was elected to the Puerto Rico House of Representatives at the 2000 general elections, to represent District 29.[3] During his first term, he served as Majority Whip for the PPD, and presided the Committees of Ethics, Federal and International Affairs, and Consumer Affairs.[4]
Ferrer was reelected at the 2004 general elections, this time as a Representative At-large.[5] This time, his party lost the Majority in both the Senate and the House, and Ferrer took over as Minority Speaker.
In 2008, Ferrer was reelected for a third consecutive term, being the candidate with the most votes for the position among all candidates.[6] Due to the defeat of the PPD in the race for Governor and both the Senate and the House, Ferrer remained as Minority Speaker.
The defeat of the PPD led to the resignation of Aníbal Acevedo Vilá as President. Héctor Ferrer became President of the party in November 10, 2008 after a meeting of the Board of Directors which included veteran leaders like Héctor Luis Acevedo, Rafael Hernández Colón, and Miguel Hernández Agosto.[7]
In 2011, he surrendered the presidency of the party to new gubernatorial candidate, Alejandro García Padilla. He had initially announced his intentions to run for Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, but then announced his decision to run for mayor of San Juan, against incumbent Jorge Santini at the 2012 general elections.
Domestic abuse scandal
In February 2012, Ferrer was detained after allegations of domestic abuse against his long-term partner, Elisa Hernández.[8] Initially, Hernández was granted a protection order against Ferrer for one year. Shortly after, however, she asked for it to be rescinded.[9] With conflicting versions surrounding the circumstances of the event and how it was handled, Ferrer resigned all of his political positions five days after the accusation.[10] Several months later, the Office of the Special Independent Prosecutor's Panel (FEI in Spanish) determined there was insufficient evidence against Ferrer and opted not to press any charges against him.[11]
Personal life
Ferrer was in a relationship Elisa "Beba" Hernández for seven years. They have a son together. Ferrer has two other children from a previous relationship. Ferrer's brother, Eduardo, was elected to the House of Representatives in 2012.
Ferrer is an avid athlete and practices a variety of sports, including baseball, jogging, cycling, and swimming, among others.
In September 2015, Ferrer announced that he was diagnosed with cancer in the esophagus.[12]
Notes
- ↑ This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Ferrer and the second or maternal family name is Ríos.
References
- ↑ http://ppdpr.net/partido/presidente/ PDP Party President Biography
- ↑ Héctor Ferrer on CamaraDeRepresentantes
- ↑ Elecciones Generales de 2000: Representante de Distrito 29 on CEEPUR
- ↑ "Trayectoria de Héctor Ferrer". El Nuevo Díadate=February 23, 2012.
- ↑ Elecciones Generales 2004: Representantes por Acumulación on CEEPUR
- ↑ Elecciones Generales 2008: Representante por Acumulación on CEEPUR
- ↑ "Trayectoria de Héctor Ferrer". El Nuevo Díadate=February 23, 2012.
- ↑ Maribel Hernández (February 23, 2012). "Héctor Ferrer arrestado por violencia doméstica". El Nuevo Día.
- ↑ Santiago, Yaritza (February 26, 2012). ""Revive" Héctor Ferrer". El Nuevo Día.
- ↑ "Héctor Ferrer renuncia a todos sus puestos políticos". El Nuevo Día. February 28, 2012.
- ↑ "Héctor Ferrer no descarta aspirar a la gobernación en 2016". NotiCel (in Spanish) (CyberNews). 2014-10-07. Retrieved 2015-12-27.
- ↑ Pacheco, Istra (2015-09-28). "Héctor Ferrer tiene cáncer de esófago". Primera Hora (in Spanish). Retrieved 2015-12-27.