Olga María del Carmen Sánchez Cordero Dávila (born 16 July 1947) is a Mexican politician and former

jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the Uni ...

. She was the

Secretary of the Interior Secretary of the Interior may refer to: * Secretary of the Interior (Mexico) * Interior Secretary of Pakistan * Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines) * United States Secretary of the Interior See also

*Interior ministry ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, and the first woman to ever hold this position. She previously served as a judge on the

Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation ( es, Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación (SCJN) is the Mexican institution serving as the country's federal high court and the spearhead organisation for the judiciary of the Mexican Federal Go ...

, Mexico's highest federal court, from 26 January 1995 to 30 November 2015. She currently serves as President of the Senate of the Republic.

Career

Born in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

, Sánchez Cordero studied law at the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico ( es, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM) is a public research university in Mexico. It is consistently ranked as one of the best universities in Latin America, where it's also the bigges ...

(UNAM). Sánchez Cordero was the first female notary public in Mexico City. She was appointed ''Minister'' ( Associate Justice) of the

(SCJN) by Ernesto Zedillo and confirmed by the

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 el ...

on 26 January 1995. She was the ninth woman to hold a seat on the SCJN. She left on 30 November 2015. In December 2017, Andrés Manuel López Obrador released his proposed cabinet listing and had Sánchez Cordero as his pick for Secretary of Interior. She was a

Senator 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 el ...

in Mexico's LXIV Legislature of the Mexican Congress from September 1, 2018 until López Obrador's inauguration on December 1, 2018, when she took office as Secretary of Interior. This made her the first woman to ever hold this position.

Political views

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...

'' describes her as a "social liberal ... European-style social democrat." She has announced her intention to propose decriminalization of recreational marijuana. She also intends to decriminalize abortion throughout the country.

Personal life

Olga Sánchez Cordero is married to Eduardo García Villegas and has three children. She reported income of MXN $10,688,288 in 2019, including her salary of MXN $1,914,432 plus investments.

References

Mexican women judges Mexican women in politics National Autonomous University of Mexico alumni Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation justices People from Mexico City Living people 1955 births Members of the Constituent Assembly of Mexico City Mexican Secretaries of the Interior Morena (political party) politicians Female interior ministers Women Secretaries of State of Mexico Cabinet of Andrés Manuel López Obrador 20th-century Mexican judges 21st-century Mexican judges 20th-century women judges 21st-century women judges {{Mexico-politician-Morena-stub