Jaime Mayor Oreja
Encyclopedia
Jaime Mayor Oreja, is a €Spain|Spanish]] politician who served as Interior Minister in the People's Party
government of José María Aznar
before resigning in February 2001 to stand for Basque President on 13 May 2001, a post he failed to win. He is known for his strongly anti-ETA
views.
He graduated in agronomic
engineering
. In 1977 he joined the Unión de Centro Democrático (UCD) and from 1979 to 1982 represented Guipúzcoa
in the Spanish Parliament. On 9 March 1980 he was elected Member of the Basque Parliament
. On 30 July 1982 he was appointed as the Government's Delegate in the Basque Country by the then President Leopoldo Calvo Sotelo
. On 16 October a grenade
was unsuccessfully thrown against his office window, and he was not hurt. On 29 December the new Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
(PSOE) government of Felipe González
removed him from office. In February 1983 the UCD disbanded and he joined Oscar Alzaga's Democratic Popular Party
. On 26 February 1984 he stood for the position of Basque President for the Democratic Coalition, but failed to win. The coalition collapsed after the general elections of June 1986. He then tried to create another party within the Basque Country but was unable to generate enough interest until in March 1987 he founded a new party, Union of the Basque People (UPV). In 1989 he joined the newly formed People's Party
and was elected Deputy in the Congress of Deputies
for Vizcaya
, although he also represented Alava
on separate occasions. At the tenth Party Congress on 31 March 1990 he was elected to the National Executive of the People's Party as the president of the Basque section. After the Peoples's party victory in the 1996 General Elections
he was sworn in as Minister of the Interior on 6 May 1996 along with the other members of the new PP government, a post in which he remained until April 2001. In May 2001 he unsuccessfully ran for the Basque presidency again, coming second against incumbent Juan Jose Ibarretxe
, and since then he has been the People's Party parliamentary leader in the Basque Parliament. In April 2004 he was chosen to lead the Peoples party list for the 2004 European Parliament Election and was elected.
(Spanish of Jewish descent) and he had acclaimed a lot of times that he is very proud of his heritage.
Although a devout Roman Catholic (for whom divorce
and IVF is unthinkable) and (still) married, he lives in domestic partnership
with Arab-Spanish socialite and reality-show contestant Aída Nizar.
See also: European Parliament election, 2004 (Spain)
People's Party (Spain)
The People's Party is a conservative political party in Spain.The People's Party was a re-foundation in 1989 of the People's Alliance , a party led and founded by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a former Minister of Tourism during Francisco Franco's dictatorship...
government of José María Aznar
José María Aznar
José María Alfredo Aznar López served as the Prime Minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He is on the board of directors of News Corporation.-Early life:...
before resigning in February 2001 to stand for Basque President on 13 May 2001, a post he failed to win. He is known for his strongly anti-ETA
ETA
ETA , an acronym for Euskadi Ta Askatasuna is an armed Basque nationalist and separatist organization. The group was founded in 1959 and has since evolved from a group promoting traditional Basque culture to a paramilitary group with the goal of gaining independence for the Greater Basque Country...
views.
He graduated in agronomic
Agronomy
Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants for food, fuel, feed, fiber, and reclamation. Agronomy encompasses work in the areas of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and soil science. Agronomy is the application of a combination of sciences like biology,...
engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
. In 1977 he joined the Unión de Centro Democrático (UCD) and from 1979 to 1982 represented Guipúzcoa
Guipúzcoa (Spanish Congress Electoral District)
Gipuzkoa is one of the 52 electoral districts used for the Spanish Congress of Deputies - the lower chamber of the Spanish Parliament, the Cortes Generales...
in the Spanish Parliament. On 9 March 1980 he was elected Member of the Basque Parliament
Basque Parliament
The Basque Parliament is the legislative body of the Basque Autonomous Community of Spain and the elected assembly to which the Basque Government is responsible....
. On 30 July 1982 he was appointed as the Government's Delegate in the Basque Country by the then President Leopoldo Calvo Sotelo
Leopoldo Calvo Sotelo
Leopoldo Calvo-Sotelo y Bustelo, 1st Marquis of the Ría of Ribadeo and Grandee of Spain was a Spanish political figure and prime minister during the period of transition after the end of Francisco Franco's regime.-Biography:...
. On 16 October a grenade
Grenade
A grenade is a small explosive device that is projected a safe distance away by its user. Soldiers called grenadiers specialize in the use of grenades. The term hand grenade refers any grenade designed to be hand thrown. Grenade Launchers are firearms designed to fire explosive projectile grenades...
was unsuccessfully thrown against his office window, and he was not hurt. On 29 December the new Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party is a social-democratic political party in Spain. Its political position is Centre-left. The PSOE is the former ruling party of Spain, until beaten in the elections of November 2011 and the second oldest, exceeded only by the Partido Carlista, founded in...
(PSOE) government of Felipe González
Felipe González
Felipe González Márquez is a Spanish socialist politician. He was the General Secretary of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party from 1974 to 1997. To date, he remains the longest-serving Prime Minister of Spain, after having served four successive mandates from 1982 to 1996.-Early life:Felipe was...
removed him from office. In February 1983 the UCD disbanded and he joined Oscar Alzaga's Democratic Popular Party
Democratic Popular Party (Spain)
The People's Democratic Party was a christian-democratic Spanish political party.It was part of the Democratic Centre Union until 1982, when it entered into alliance with the Popular Alliance , which received the second largest number of votes in 1982 and 1986 elections.In 1989 the party, along...
. On 26 February 1984 he stood for the position of Basque President for the Democratic Coalition, but failed to win. The coalition collapsed after the general elections of June 1986. He then tried to create another party within the Basque Country but was unable to generate enough interest until in March 1987 he founded a new party, Union of the Basque People (UPV). In 1989 he joined the newly formed People's Party
People's Party (Spain)
The People's Party is a conservative political party in Spain.The People's Party was a re-foundation in 1989 of the People's Alliance , a party led and founded by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a former Minister of Tourism during Francisco Franco's dictatorship...
and was elected Deputy in the Congress of Deputies
Spanish Congress of Deputies
The Spanish Congress of Deputies is the lower house of the Cortes Generales, Spain's legislative branch. It has 350 members, elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional representation in constituencies matching the Spanish provinces using the D'Hondt method. Deputies serve four-year terms...
for Vizcaya
Vizcaya (Spanish Congress Electoral District)
Biscay is one of the 52 electoral districts used for the Spanish Congress of Deputies - the lower chamber of the Spanish Parliament, the Cortes Generales. It is situated in the Basque Country and the largest city is Bilbao where around 30% of the electorate of almost a million live...
, although he also represented Alava
Álava (Spanish Congress Electoral District)
Álava is one of the 52 electoral districts used for the Spanish Congress of Deputies - the lower chamber of the Spanish Parliament, the Cortes Generales. It was first contested in modern times in the 1977 General Election. The largest municipality is Vitoria-Gasteiz where approximately 75% of the...
on separate occasions. At the tenth Party Congress on 31 March 1990 he was elected to the National Executive of the People's Party as the president of the Basque section. After the Peoples's party victory in the 1996 General Elections
Spanish general election, 1996
General elections were held in Spain on March 3, 1996. The Prime Minister Felipe González of Spanish Socialist Workers' Party lost the elections to Partido Popular and their leader José María Aznar....
he was sworn in as Minister of the Interior on 6 May 1996 along with the other members of the new PP government, a post in which he remained until April 2001. In May 2001 he unsuccessfully ran for the Basque presidency again, coming second against incumbent Juan Jose Ibarretxe
Juan José Ibarretxe
Juan José Ibarretxe Markuartu is a Basque politician of Spain. A leading member of the Basque Nationalist Party , he was President of Spain's Basque Country autonomous community from January 2, 1999 to May 7, 2009....
, and since then he has been the People's Party parliamentary leader in the Basque Parliament. In April 2004 he was chosen to lead the Peoples party list for the 2004 European Parliament Election and was elected.
Personal life
He is a MarranoMarrano
Marranos were Jews living in the Iberian peninsula who converted to Christianity rather than be expelled but continued to observe rabbinic Judaism in secret...
(Spanish of Jewish descent) and he had acclaimed a lot of times that he is very proud of his heritage.
Although a devout Roman Catholic (for whom divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
and IVF is unthinkable) and (still) married, he lives in domestic partnership
Domestic partnership
A domestic partnership is a legal or personal relationship between two individuals who live together and share a common domestic life but are neither joined by marriage nor a civil union...
with Arab-Spanish socialite and reality-show contestant Aída Nizar.
Education
- Former President and spokesman of the Grupo Popular in the BasqueBasque Country (autonomous community)The Basque Country is an autonomous community of northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, also called Historical Territories....
Regional Parliament - Vice-Secretary-General of the PP (since 1996) and Honorary President of the PP in the Basque Country
- 1980: Minister for TourismTourismTourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
in the Pre-autonomous Government of the Basque Country - Member for Guipúzcoa
- 1982: Government DelegateDelegateA delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization at a meeting or conference between organizations of the same level A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization (e.g., a government, a charity, an NGO, or a trade union) at a meeting or conference...
in the Basque Country
Career
- 1984-1986: President and spokesman of the Coalición Popular in the Basque Regional Parliament
- 1980: Elected autonomous Member of parliament within the UCD
- 2001-2004: President of the Grupo Parlamentario Popular in the Basque Regional Parliament
- 1989: Member of the Cortes for Vizcaya
- national member of parliament for ÁlavaÁlava (Spanish Congress Electoral District)Álava is one of the 52 electoral districts used for the Spanish Congress of Deputies - the lower chamber of the Spanish Parliament, the Cortes Generales. It was first contested in modern times in the 1977 General Election. The largest municipality is Vitoria-Gasteiz where approximately 75% of the...
from 1979-1982 for the UCD and from 1989 to 2004 for the PP - from 1996-2001: Minister of the Interior
- Head of the Spanish Delegation to the EPP-ED Group
- Said Tenemos que saber, situar a nuestro partido.
See also: European Parliament election, 2004 (Spain)
European Parliament election, 2004 (Spain)
The European Parliament election of 2004 in Spain was the election of Members of the European Parliament representing Spain constituency for the 2004-2009 term of the European Parliament. It was part of the wider 2004 European election...