Iratxe García Pérez (; born 7 October 1974) is a Spanish politician of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE). She has served 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 ...

since 2004, and has served as the Leader of the

Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats The Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) is the Political groups of the European Parliament, political group in the European Parliament of the Party of European Socialists (PES). The Progressive Alliance of Socialists and ...

parliamentary group since 2019.

Biography

Early life

Born on 7 October 1974 in

Barakaldo Barakaldo (; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the Biscay province in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country in Spain. Located on the Left Bank (Biscay), Left Bank of the Estuary of Bilbao, the city is pa ...

, Biscay, she obtained a diplomature in Social Work at the University of Valladolid in 1995. A resident of Laguna de Duero, she served as municipal councillor of Laguna de Duero and as member of the Valladolid Provincial Deputation from 1995 to 2000.

Member of the Spanish Parliament, 2000–2004

García became a member of the

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 ...

after being elected in the 2000 general election in representation of

Valladolid Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...

Member of the European Parliament, 2004–present

In her first parliamentary term between 2004 and 2009, García served on the Committee on Regional Development (REGI), the Delegation to the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly (EMPA), and the Delegation for Relations with the Maghreb countries and the Arab Maghreb Union (including

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

). She also serves on the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) and the Parliament's Delegation for Relations with the

Arab Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

. In addition, she is a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on LGBT Rights and of the European Parliament Intergroup on the

Western Sahara Western Sahara is a territorial dispute, disputed territory in Maghreb, North-western Africa. It has a surface area of . Approximately 30% of the territory () is controlled by the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR); the remaining 70% is ...

. In July 2014, García was elected chairwoman of the European Parliament Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM). In September 2014, PSOE chairman Pedro Sánchez appointed her as head of the party's delegation of MEPs in the S&D Group, replacing Elena Valenciano. Following the 2019 European Parliament election, the S&D Group chose García as new leader, a day after incumbent Udo Bullmann withdrew his candidacy. In March 2021, as leader of the S&D Group, she together with the parliamentary group opposed a debate on the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia and corruption revelation in Maltese politics.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Garcia, Iratxe 1974 births Living people Spanish municipal councillors Members of the 7th Congress of Deputies (Spain) MEPs for Spain 2004–2009 MEPs for Spain 2009–2014 MEPs for Spain 2014–2019 MEPs for Spain 2019–2024 21st-century women MEPs for Spain People from Barakaldo Spanish Socialist Workers' Party MEPs Basque women in politics University of Valladolid alumni 20th-century Spanish women MEPs for Spain 2024–2029