Carlos Romero Barceló
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| Carlos Romero Barceló | |
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| In office January 2, 1977 – January 2, 1985 |
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| Preceded by | Rafael Hernández Colón |
| Succeeded by | Rafael Hernández Colón |
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Mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico
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| In office January 2, 1969 – January 2, 1977 |
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| Preceded by | Felisa Rincón de Gautier |
| Succeeded by | Hernán Padilla |
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| In office January 2, 1992 – January 2, 2000 |
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| Preceded by | Antonio Colorado |
| Succeeded by | Aníbal Acevedo Vilá |
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| Born | September 4, 1932 San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Political party | New Progressive Party Democratic Party |
| Spouse | Kate Donnelly |
| Profession | Lawyer |
Carlos Antonio Romero Barceló "El Caballo" (born September 4, 1932) is a Puerto Rican politician who was the fifth Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the second governor to be elected from the New Progressive Party (PNP) and also Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico from 1993 to 2001, making him one of the more succesful politicians in the island-nation's history.
Romero Barceló is the grandson of Antonio R. Barceló, a former Union Party leader and advocate of Puerto Rican self-determination during the early 20th century.
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[edit] Education
Carlos Romero Barceló attended Phillips Exeter Academy in the state of New Hampshire, graduating in 1949. Later he attended Yale University, obtaining a B.A. in Political Science and Economics in 1953. That same year, at age 20, he returned to Puerto Rico and enrolled at the University of Puerto Rico Law School, becoming a licensed lawyer in 1956. In 1977, he received a doctorate Honoris causa from the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut.
[edit] Political career
Romero Barceló, an avid supporter of Puerto Rico statehood with the United States of America, became involved in with the "Partido Estadista Republicano", the forerunner of the New Progressive Party, which at the time was led by Miguel Angel Garcia Mendez. He formed part of "Ciudadanos pro Estado 51" (Citizens for the 51st State) in 1965. Later, he became involved with the political group "Estadistas Unidos", founded by Luis Ferre.
Barceló was one of the founding members of the New Progressive Party in 1967. The following year he was elected Mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico. In 1973, he became the first Hispanic to become vice-president of the National League of Cities and in 1974 became president. He served as mayor until 1976 when he defeated incumbent Governor Rafael Hernández Colón. Romero Barceló is frequently associated with the “Cerro Maravilla Incident” of 1978 in which two young pro-Independence activists at Cerro Maravilla were killed at the hands of rogue members of the Puerto Rican Police. The tragic incident was investigated several times by the P.R. Justice Department, the U.S. Justice Department and the F.B.I., and was widely reported on by the local press. In the end (and after some reversals), ten officers were indicted and found guilty of perjury, destruction of evidence, and obstruction of justice, of whom four were convicted of second-degree murder during 1984 [1]. Although the governor was never implicated of any wrongdoing, the PPD used this unfortunate event to discredit Barcelo in the eyes of Puerto Rican voters. In 1984, Barcelo was defeated in his re-election bid in 1984 by Hernandez-Colon.
[edit] Governor
Romero Barceló brought well-received economic resolutions to the island during his terms in office, emphasizing the island's tourism potential. However, the island's government services deteriorated during his term in office and his statements declaring the cops that carried out the Maravilla murders to be heroes hurt his image. In 1980 he was elected for a second term as governor by a margin of 3,037 votes over again PPD-candidate Rafael Hernández Colón. The 1980 gubernatorial elections where among the closest in Puerto Rican history, requiring the intervention of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico to rule whether improperly cast ballots should be counted. The New Progressive Party lost control of the legislature, and party-affiliated mayors won in 28 of the 78 municipalities on the island.
He sought re-election for a third term in 1984 but was defeated by Rafael Hernández Colón. After the elections, Barceló's reaction to the defeat, in response to TV news reporter Rafael Bracero, was Que Derrota? (What defeat?). For him, he said, what had occurred was not a defeat, but simply an "electoral loss". The comment has become legendary in Puerto Rican politics.
In 1986, he was elected by his party to fill in a vacancy in the Senate of Puerto Rico.
[edit] Resident Commissioner
In the 1992 elections, Romero was elected Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, and relocated to Washington D.C.. He would later on be reelected in the elections of 1996.
During his tenure as Resident Commissioner he campaigned for Puerto Rican statehood and endorsed the Young Project, which sought to call a referendum to resolve Puerto Rico's political status. In 2000, he sought a third term but was defeated by PPD's Aníbal Acevedo Vilá. He once again sought his party's nomination for the post of Resident Commissioner in 2003, but was defeated by Luis Fortuño. Although he has retired from electoral politics, he has remained active in PNP political gatherings and is a member of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC).
[edit] Legacy
Romero Barceló is married to Kate Donnelly. His daughter, Melinda Romero Donnelly, was an NPP member of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico for 8 years. He is a boxing fan, and advocated for holding world championship bouts in San Juan during his terms in office.
The federal charges Puerto Rico's current governor faces stem from a tip brought to the federal court by Romero Barcelo. Romero has openly admitted to being the catalyst of the federal investigation against Anibal Acevedo Vila. In 2000, Acevedo accused Romero Barcelo of receiving 175,000 dollars of illegal contributions to fund his campaign bid for Resident Comissioner. The witness Acevedo Vila presented to authorities to validate his claims later recanted, but Vila's comments hurt Romero's in the court of public opinion, contributing to his loss that November.
[edit] Publications
- "Puerto Rico, U.S.A.: The Case for Statehood." Foreign Affairs 59 (Fall 1980): pp. 58–81.
- Statehood Is For the Poor. N.P.: Master Typesetting of P.R. Inc., 1978. Originally published as La Estatidad es para los Pobres, 1973.
- The book titled Two Lynchings on Cerro Maravilla: The Police Murders in Puerto Rico and the Federal Government Coverup by then San Juan Star journalist Manuel 'Manny' Suarez.
[edit] References
- ^ 10 From Puerto Rico Police Indicted on Cover-Up of '78 Killings by Reginald Stuart, The New York Times, February 7, 1984, retrieved August 2, 2006
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Carlos Romero Barceló at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Hispanic Americans in Congress: Carlos Romero-Barceló
- The National League of Cities
- League of United Latin American Citizens
| Preceded by Rafael Hernández Colón |
Governor of Puerto Rico 1977–1985 |
Succeeded by Rafael Hernández Colón |
| Preceded by Antonio Colorado |
Resident Commissioner to the U.S. House of Representatives from Puerto Rico 1993–2001 |
Succeeded by Aníbal Acevedo Vilá |
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