Mónica Haydée Fein (born 3 June 1957) is an Argentine biochemist and

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

politician who was ''

intendente An intendant (; pt, intendente ; es, intendente ) was, and sometimes still is, a public official, especially in France, Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. The intendancy system was a centralizing administrative system developed in France. In ...

'' (mayor) of

Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the west bank of the Paraná River. Rosario is the third-most populous ci ...

from 2011 to 2019. She has been a National Deputy since 2021, and previously held the same position from 2007 to 2011. Since 2021, she has been president of the Socialist Party.

Early life and education

Fein was born in Luján, Buenos Aires Province. She became active in politics at age 17, joining the Popular Socialist Party. She participated in the National Reform Movement as President of the Student Center of the School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy at the

National University of Rosario The National University of Rosario ( es, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, UNR) is a research public university located in the city of Rosario, province of Santa Fe, Argentina. Overview Rosario National University (UNR) was created in 1968 by ...

, where she graduated with a degree in

Biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...

. She then served as Secretary of Student Welfare, as Faculty Graduate Advisor, and as Secretary of the UNR University Extension. She began her training in Public Health at the Lazarte Institute. She participated in the creation of the Laboratory for Proprietary Medicinal (LEM) for the City of

in 1992; the LEM, which coordinated its development with academia, would become a national model for the public production of

pharmaceutical A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and re ...

s. Fein was appointed Director of the City Sanitation Department in 1995, where she promoted more active

food safety Food safety (or food hygiene) is used as a scientific method/discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent food-borne illness. The occurrence of two or more cases of a similar illness resulting from t ...

control by developing the Food Institute, a pioneer in Argentina in the field of locally based public food safety education and quality inspection.

Political career

Hermes Binner Hermes Juan Binner (June 5, 1943 − June 26, 2020) was an Argentine physician and a politician. He was Governor of Santa Fe from 2007 to 2011.primary care Primary care is the day-to-day healthcare given by a health care provider. Typically this provider acts as the first contact and principal point of continuing care for patients within a healthcare system, and coordinates other specialist care t ...

network, focused efforts on hospital standards, and launched the Center for Ambulatory Medical Specialties of Rosario (CEMAR). She headed the

party list An electoral list is a grouping of candidates for election, usually found in proportional or mixed electoral systems, but also in some plurality electoral systems. An electoral list can be registered by a political party (a party list) or can ...

of Socialist candidates to the

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

in 2001, and remained in the post until 2003, serving as President of the Health Commission. Mayor

Miguel Lifschitz Roberto Miguel Lifschitz (13 September 1955 – 9 May 2021) was an Argentine politician and civil engineer of the Socialist Party (Argentina), Socialist Party who was Governor of Santa Fe, Governor of Santa Fe Province from 2015 to 2019. Prior t ...

retained Fein as Secretary of Public Health. She oversaw construction of the new Martín Maternity facility, and her management was recognized by the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

. She was elected to the

Argentine Chamber of Deputies The Chamber of Deputies ( es, Cámara de Diputados de la Nación), officially the Honorable Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Nation, is the lower house of the Argentine National Congress ( es, Congreso de la Nación). It is made up of 257 ...

in 2007 for the Santa Fe Civic and Social Progressive Front, which led the Socialist Party caucus therein, and Fein was elected caucus president. She was named Secretary of the Commission for Social Action and Public Health, and also served in the Committees on Rules, Taxes, Constitutional Affairs, General Legislation, Population and Human Development, and the Elderly. She was nominated as candidate for mayor of the city of Rosario by the

Progressive, Civic and Social Front The Progressive, Civic and Social Front (, FPCyS) is a center-left political coalition in Santa Fe Province, Argentina. History It was first formed in Santa Fe Province in 2006, but was adapted in other provinces for the 2013 Argentine legisl ...

on May 22, 2011. She was elected on July 24 with 52.2% of the vote, defeating the runner-up,

Héctor Cavallero Héctor Cavallero (2 October 1939 – 2 October 2020), nicknamed ''El Tigre'' ("The Tiger"), was an Argentine politician, who was mayor of Rosario, Santa Fe, and a member of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies for the Province of Santa Fe. Biogra ...

, by 22% and becoming the first Socialist woman elected mayor in Argentine history.

References

External links

* (in Spanish) {{DEFAULTSORT:Fein, Monica 1957 births Living people People from Luján, Buenos Aires National University of Rosario alumni Argentine biochemists Argentine women scientists Women biochemists 20th-century women scientists Socialist Party (Argentina) politicians Members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies elected in Santa Fe Mayors of Rosario, Santa Fe Women members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies Women mayors of places in Argentina