Esteban González Pons
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Esteban González Pons (; born 21 August 1964) is a Spanish politician of the People's Party (PP) who was a
member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...
between 2014 and 2023. He was elected to the
15th Congress of Deputies The 15th Congress of Deputies is the current meeting of the Congress of Deputies, the lower house of the Spanish , with the membership determined by the results of the general election held on 23 July 2023. The congress met for the first time o ...
from
Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
in the
2023 Spanish general election A General elections in Spain, general election was held in Spain on Sunday, 23 July 2023, to elect the members of the 15th Cortes Generales. All 350 seats in the Congress of Deputies were up for election, as well as 208 of 266 seats in the Sen ...
. In July 2024 he returns to the
European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...
as vicepresident


Early life and career

Born in
Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
, González Pons is married and with three children. He gained a doctorate in law and constitutional rights at
University of Valencia The University of Valencia ( ), shortened to UV, is a public research university in Valencia, Spain. It is one of the oldest universities in Spain, and the oldest in the Valencian Community. It is regarded as one of Spain's leading academic i ...
and practised as a chess player.


Political career


Career in national politics

González Pons entered politics in 1993 serving as
senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
for Valencia province, in the process becoming the youngest member of the senate. He continued in that role until 2003, resigning after being chosen as minister of culture, education and sport in the Valencian regional parliament. He served as the PP spokesman from 2007 until 2008 when he was elected to the
Spanish Congress of Deputies The Congress of Deputies () is the lower house of the , Spain's legislative branch, the upper house being the Senate of Spain, Senate. The Congress meets in the Palacio de las Cortes, Madrid, Palace of the Parliament () in Madrid. Congress has ...
representing Valencia region. He headed the PP list for that election, virtually guaranteeing his election in a district where the PP and predecessors had won at least one seat at every election in the modern Spanish democratic era.


Member of the European Parliament, 2014–present

In early 2014, the PP chose González Pons to be party’s number 2 for the
European elections Elections to the European Parliament take place every five years by universal adult suffrage; with more than 400 million people eligible to vote, they are the second largest democratic elections in the world after India's. Until 2019, 751 ...
, following
Miguel Arias Cañete Miguel Arias Cañete (born 24 February 1950) is a Spanish politician who served as European Commissioner for Energy and Climate Action in the Juncker Commission from 2014 to 2019. A member of the Spanish People's Party, Arias served as Minist ...
. As
Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...
, he has since been serving on the
Committee on Budgets The Committee on Budgets (BUDG) is a committee of the European Parliament. It has 41 members plus 39 substitute members. The committee's current chair is Jean Arthuis, who has held this position since 7 July 2014.Committee on Constitutional Affairs The Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO) is a committee of the European Parliament dealing with institutional matters such as revisions to the Treaties of the European Union, inter-institutional agreements, and the Parliament's internal rules ...
. González Pons is also a member of the parliament’s delegations for relations with
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean. In addition to his committee assignments, he is a member of the
European Parliament Intergroup on LGBT Rights The European Parliament Intergroup on LGBTI Rights is an intergroup of the European Parliament's legislators which focuses on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) persons both inside and outside the European Uni ...
; the European Parliament Intergroup on Children’s Rights; the European Parliament Intergroup on SMEs; and the European Parliament Intergroup on Sports. When Arias Cañete was nominated as European Commissioner in late 2014, González Pons took over as leader of the Spanish delegation in the
EPP Group The European People's Party Group (EPP Group or simply EPP) is a political group of the European Parliament consisting of deputies (MEPs) from the member parties of the European People's Party (EPP). Sometimes it also includes independent MEP ...
. In addition, he has been serving as co-chair of the EPP Justice and Home Affairs Ministers Meeting, alongside
Thomas de Maizière Karl Ernst Thomas de Maizière (; born 21 January 1954) is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who served as Federal Minister of the Interior from 2009 to 2011 and 2013 to 2018, as well as Federal Minister of Defence f ...
(until 2018), Kai Mykkänen (2018–2019) and Pieter De Crem (2019–2020) and Annelies Verlinden (since 2020). He also chaired the EPP’s working group on
Brexit Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...
. Following the
2019 elections The following elections were scheduled to occur in 2019. The International Foundation for Electoral Systems has a calendar of upcoming elections around the world, and the National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections in cou ...
, González Pons was part of a cross-party working group in charge of drafting the European Parliament's four-year work program on the rule of law, borders and migration. Within the EPP group, González Pons is one of the deputies of chairman
Manfred Weber Manfred Weber (born 14 July 1972) is a German politician who has been serving as President of the European People's Party (EPP) since 2022 and as Leader of the EPP Group in the European Parliament since 2014. He has been a Member of the European ...
. In 2021, he was appointed to the group's task force for proposing changes to its rules of procedure to allow for “the possibility of the collective termination of membership of a group of Members rather than just individual membership”, alongside Esther de Lange,
Othmar Karas Othmar Karas (born 24 December 1957) is an Austrian politician who served as the First Vice-President of the European Parliament since January 2022, having been a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 1999. He is a member of the Austrian ...
, Jan Olbrycht and Paulo Rangel.


Political positions

Following Brexit, González Pons joined
Manfred Weber Manfred Weber (born 14 July 1972) is a German politician who has been serving as President of the European People's Party (EPP) since 2022 and as Leader of the EPP Group in the European Parliament since 2014. He has been a Member of the European ...
,
David McAllister David James McAllister (born 12 January 1971) is a German politician who has been a member of the European Parliament since 2014. He is a member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), part of the European People's Party. He is the current vi ...
and
Sandra Kalniete Sandra Kalniete (born 22 December 1952) is a Latvian politician, author, diplomat and independence movement leader. She served as Foreign Minister of Latvia 2002–2004 and as European Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisherie ...
in co-signing a letter to David Sassoli, the
president of the European Parliament The president of the European Parliament presides over the debates and activities of the European Parliament. They also represent the Parliament within the European Union (EU) and internationally. The president's signature is required for Euro ...
, to establish an EU–UK Joint Parliamentary Assembly. In a joint letter with 15 other MEPs from various political groups, González Pons urged the
High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission (HR/VP) is the chief co-ordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) within the European Un ...
,
Josep Borrell Josep Borrell Fontelles (; born 24 April 1947) is a Spanish politician who served as High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission from 2019 to 2024. A member of the Spani ...
, in early 2021 to replace Alberto Navarro, the European Union's ambassador to
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
, for allegedly siding with the country's Communist leadership.


References


External links


Biography at Spanish Congress websitePersonal website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzalez Pons, Esteban 1964 births Living people Members of the 9th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the Senate of Spain MEPs for Spain 2014–2019 MEPs for Spain 2019–2024 Politicians from Valencia People's Party (Spain) politicians Members of the 15th Congress of Deputies (Spain) MEPs for Spain 2024–2029