Melina Aída Delú (born 18 June 1976) is an

Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...

politician who served as a National Deputy elected in

La Pampa La Pampa () is a sparsely populated province of Argentina, located in the Pampas in the center of the country. Neighboring provinces are from the north clockwise San Luis, Córdoba, Buenos Aires, Río Negro, Neuquén and Mendoza. History I ...

from 2017 to 2021. A member of the

Justicialist Party The Justicialist Party ( es, Partido Justicialista, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism. Current president Alberto Fernández belongs to the Justicialist Party (and has, since 2021, served ...

, Delú sat in the

Frente de Todos The Frente de Todos (translated as "Everyone's Front") is a coalition of Peronist and Kirchnerist political parties in Argentina formed to support President Alberto Fernández and Vice President Cristina Kirchner. Fernández won the 2019 gene ...

parliamentary bloc from 2019 to 2021. Delú previously worked in Provincial Housing Institute of La Pampa, from 2007 to 2017. She also served as Director of the Casa de La Pampa, the province's "cultural embassy" in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

Early life and education

Delú was born on 18 June 1976 in

General Pico General Pico is a city located in the northeast of La Pampa Province, Argentina. It is located at above sea level and inside the region of the ''Pampa Húmeda Llana'' (Flat-Humid Pampas). It has a surface area of . With a population of 53,352 ...

La Pampa Province La Pampa () is a sparsely populated province of Argentina, located in the Pampas in the center of the country. Neighboring provinces are from the north clockwise San Luis, Córdoba, Buenos Aires, Río Negro, Neuquén and Mendoza. History In ...

. She comes from a political family, as her parents were both politically active, and her grandfather served as Secretary General of the General Confederation of Labour. She studied International Relations at the

University of Belgrano The University of Belgrano ( es, Universidad de Belgrano, commonly referred to as UB) is a private university established in 1964 and located in the Belgrano district of the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Overview The university has nine de ...

, graduating in 1998. Delú is married to Gustavo Martín.

Political career

Delú worked as a legislative aide at the office of Senator

Carlos Verna Carlos Alberto Verna (born 8 May 1946) is an Argentine Justicialist Party (PJ) politician who was governor of La Pampa Province twice, from 2003 to 2007 and from 2015 to 2019. He was also a National Senator for La Pampa for two terms, and se ...

(who would later go on to be elected

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of La Pampa) from 1996 to 2003. In 2003, she was appointed Executive Director of the Casa de La Pampa, the province's "cultural embassy" in

. From 2007 to 2017, she worked at the Provincial Institute of Housing of La Pampa. At the 2017 legislative election, Delú was the second candidate in the

list to the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

, behind

Ariel Rauschenberger Ariel Rauschenberger (born 26 April 1966) is an Argentine politician who serves as a National Deputy elected La Pampa since 2023, having previously held the position from 2017 to 2021. He belongs to the Justicialist Party. Rauschenberger served ...

. The list was the most voted with 45.42% of the vote, and both Rauschenberger and Delú were elected. She was sworn in on 6 December 2017. As a national deputy, Delú formed part of the parliamentary commissions on Internal Security, Foreign Affairs, Education, Disabilities, and Housing and Urban Planning. She was a supporter of the

legalization of abortion Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...

in Argentina. She voted in favour of the two Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy bills that were debated by the Argentine Congress in 2018 and 2020, although she initially planned to vote against the first bill, in 2018. Then deputy-

Sergio Ziliotto Sergio Raúl Ziliotto (born 24 September 1962) is an Argentine Justicialist Party politician who is currently governor of La Pampa Province, since 10 December 2019. Previously, from 2015 to 2019, he was a National Deputy for La Pampa. Early ...

(who was later elected Governor of La Pampa) is widely credited for having convinced Delú to change her mind. Ahead of the 2021 primary election, Delú was confirmed as one of the alternate candidates to the

National Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the eld ...

on the

list in La Pampa.

References

External links

Profile on the official website of the Chamber of Deputies
(in Spanish) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Delu, Melina Living people 1976 births People from General Pico Members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies elected in La Pampa Women members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies Justicialist Party politicians 21st-century Argentine politicians 21st-century Argentine women politicians