Carlos Méndez Martínez (born June 26, 1943) is a Puerto Rican politician and former mayor of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico for 24 years.

Early life and education

Carlos Méndez-Martínez was born in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico to Pablo Méndez-Ellinger, a tobacconist from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico and Rosa Martínez-Rosa, a housewife from Rincón, Puerto Rico. His dad died when Méndez was one year old and his mother died when he was 9 years old. Without having graduated from high school, at age 17, he joined the United States Army, becoming a veteran at the age of 19. He studied

silversmithing A silversmith is a metalworker who crafts objects from silver. The terms ''silversmith'' and ''goldsmith'' are not exactly synonyms as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are or were largely the same but the end product may vary great ...

and gemology and worked in both. He also worked in the real estate business. At the age of 45, Méndez took the GED and studied an Associate of Arts in Political Science at a community college and continued to study a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at the University of Washington, graduating in 1992. Méndez, wrote a book titled ''Tuve que contar mi historia'' which was published in 2009 by ''Editorial Tiempo Nuevo''.

Political career

In 1995, he returned to Puerto Rico, and ran for mayor of Aguadilla at the

1996 general elections File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

. He has been reelected in 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016. In the 2008 elections, he received almost 70% of the votes. His margin of victory was one of the largest among elected mayors in that election. He was the president of the Republican Party of Puerto Rico from 2007 to 2015 and president of the

Puerto Rico Mayors Federation The mayors of Puerto Rico encompass the different mayors of the municipalities of Puerto Rico; each mayor being the highest-ranking officer of their corresponding municipality. Several laws existed that created the post of mayor in each municipal ...

. In 2012, Méndez endorsed the nomination of

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts f ...

for president of the United States in the

2012 Republican National Convention The 2012 Republican National Convention was a gathering held by the Republican Party (United States), U.S. Republican Party during which Delegate (American politics), delegates officially nominated former List of governors of Massachusetts, Ma ...

. After 24 years as mayor, Méndez announced he would not seek re-election in 2020. Among his notable works as mayor is the

Aguadilla Ice Skating Arena Aguadilla Ice Skating Arena, A.I.S.A., is a multi-use facility in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. The arena was the only ice skating facility in the Caribbean region. The facility is owned and administered by the city. The Ice Skating rink has been clos ...

, Ramey Base Bowling Alley, Aguadilla Electronic Library, Atlantic Garden Veterans Cemetery, Paseo Real Marina, Las Cascadas Hotel, Aguadilla City Center, Skate and Splash Park, and Tres Palmas Park. While the "Las Cascadas Hotel" was constructed the hotel was not completed under the mayor's tenure and in 2019 reports indicated the mayor placed the property along with the Aguadilla Ice Skating Arena for sale. In 2019, Aguadilla received the City Livability Award from the United States Conference of Mayors and honored the efforts spearheaded by Carlos Méndez Martínez.

Personal life

He married on January 1, 1977, with Heidi G. Méndez (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Mayer) at Seattle in King County, Washington. They had a son, Mark A. Méndez. Méndez divorced in 1998, after 21 years of marriage. In 1999, he met his current wife Mildred Cortes-Ramos.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mendez Martinez, Carlos 1943 births Living people Mayors of places in Puerto Rico New Progressive Party (Puerto Rico) politicians People from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico Republican Party (Puerto Rico) politicians United States Army soldiers University of Washington College of Arts and Sciences alumni