Margarita María Cedeño Lizardo, formerly known as Margarita Cedeño de Fernández, is a Dominican politician who served as Vice President of the Dominican Republic from 2012 to 2020. She was married to former president, Leonel Fernández and served as the First Lady of the Dominican Republic from 2004 to 2012.

Margarita Cedeño Lizardo
Cedeño in 2011
39th Vice President of the Dominican Republic
In office
16 August 2012 – 16 August 2020
PresidentDanilo Medina
Preceded byRafael Alburquerque
Succeeded byRaquel Peña de Antuña
53rd First Lady of the Dominican Republic
In role
16 August 2004 – 16 August 2012
PresidentLeonel Fernández
Preceded byRosa Gómez de Mejía
Succeeded byCándida Montilla de Medina
Personal details
Born
Margarita María Cedeño Lizardo

(1965-05-01) 1 May 1965 (age 59)
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
CitizenshipDominican
Political partyDominican Liberation Party
SpouseLeonel Fernández (m. 2003[1]–d. 2022[2])
Children
  • Ramón Emil Fiorentino
  • Gabriela Angelissa Fiorentino
  • Yolanda América María Fernández
Parents
  • Luis Emilio Cedeño Matos (1925–2018)[3] (father)
  • Angela Margarita Lizardo Olivares (mother)
Alma materAutonomous University of Santo Domingo (LLB)
Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (M.A.)
University of Salamanca (M.A.)
OccupationPhilanthropist, politician
ProfessionLawyer
Websitehttps://margarita.do

Early and personal life

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Cedeño was born on 1 May 1965 in Santo Domingo[4] to Luis Emilio Cedeño Matos and Angela Margarita Lizardo Olivares.[3][1] She worked with local law firms in the Dominican Republic, among which the law firm of Doctor Abel Rodríguez del Orbe and Fernández y Asociados, where she is an associate member.[4] During the years 1996–2000, she assisted as legal counselor to the president nominated as sub-secretary of state.[5] Besides being ad honorem counselor and director of the Legal and Investment Environment Management of the Office for the Promotion of Foreign Investment of the Dominican Republic.

She has a bachelor's in law from the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo and a master's in economic Llllegislation from the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra. She also has participated in courses and seminars at Georgetown and Harvard University in the United States and Geneva University in Switzerland.[4]

On 16 October 2009, Cedeño was named Goodwill Ambassador of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).[6]

Political career

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When she was the First Lady (2004–2012), she and her staff coordinated social policies for her husband's administration, generating programs of health and education for children, young people, single mothers and families, in general, as a key element in society.

2012 presidential election

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On April 10, 2011 in a meeting of the Central Committee (Comité Central) of the Dominican Liberation Party, she registered her pre-candidature for the 2012 presidential elections.[7] She was elected vice president to Danilo Medina on 20 May 2012. She became the second woman to serve as vice president after Milagros Ortiz Bosch was elected under former president Hipólito Mejía in 2000–2004.

See also

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Notes

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Margarita Cedeño Lizardo". Vicepresidencia de la República Dominicana (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 27 July 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
  2. ^ "Es oficial: Margarita Cedeño y Leonel Fernández se divorcian". Hoy. 7 March 2022. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Muere padre de Vice presidenta Margarita Cedeño" (in Spanish). Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic: La Jornada de Santo Domingo. 3 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2018.)
  4. ^ a b c "Biografia". PUCMM. Archived from the original on 2012-03-20. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  5. ^ "Margarita Cedeño, la popular primera dama que se convirtió en vicepresidenta". El Comercio. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. EFE. 2012-08-15. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  6. ^ "Excma. Margarita Cedeño de Fernández – Embajadora Extraordinaria de la FAO". FAO. Archived from the original on 2010-11-15. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  7. ^ "PLD aprueba 7 aspirantes para escoger su candidato el 26 de junio". El Nuevo Diario. 2011-04-10. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
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Political offices
Preceded by Vice President of the Dominican Republic
2012–2020
Succeeded by