María Alejandra Vicuña Muñoz (born 13 February 1978) is an Ecuadorian politician who served as the Vice President of Ecuador under President Lenin Moreno between January and December 2018,[2] previously as the Housing and Urban Development Minister of Ecuador.[3]
María Alejandra Vicuña | |
|---|---|
_(cropped)_(cropped).jpg) Vicuña in 2018 | |
| 49th Vice President of Ecuador | |
| In office 6 January 2018 – 4 December 2018 Acting: 4 October 2017 – 6 January 2018 Suspended from additional functions 3 December 2018 | |
| President | Lenín Moreno |
| Preceded by | Jorge Glas |
| Succeeded by | Otto Sonnenholzner |
| Minister of Urban Development and Housing | |
| In office 24 May 2017 – 6 January 2018 | |
| President | Lenin Moreno |
| Preceded by | Lyne Miranda |
| Succeeded by | Adrián Sandoya Unamuno[1] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | María Alejandra Vicuña Muñoz 13 February 1978 Guayaquil, Ecuador |
| Political party | PAIS Alliance |
Career
editVicuña was first elected to serve in the National Assembly in 2009, and was re-elected to serve again in 2013.[4] While serving in the National Assembly, she served as vice president of the largest commission relating to the health and wellbeing of Ecuadorean citizens, and was a founding member of the Commission on Education, Science, Technology, and Communication.[5]
She was named Minister of Urban Development and Housing by President Lenin Moreno in May 2017.[6] Upon the suspension of Vice President Jorge Glas, Vicuña was named Acting Vice President until a resolution on Glas's corruption charges was made.[7]
Vice President of Ecuador
edit_(cropped)_(2).jpg)
Glas was convicted for corruption in connection to the Odebrecht bribery scandal in December 2017.[8] The National Assembly then elected a new Vice President from a candidate shortlist chosen by President Moreno.[9]
On 6 January 2018, Vicuña was formally sworn in as Vice President of Ecuador.[9] She was confirmed after 70 assembly members voted for her to take office, 17 lawmakers voting against the nomination, and 19 abstentions.[10] She was the second woman to ever serve as Vice President of Ecuador, after Rosalía Arteaga took office in 1996.[7]
On December 3, 2018, Vicuña was suspended from her duties as vice president after a corruption scandal.[11][12] On 4 December 2018, Vicuña announced her desire to resign as vice president.[13][14][15][16][17] On 11 December 2018, Otto Sonnenholzner was elected as Vice President of Ecuador after the National Assembly approved him for the position.[18]
In 2020 she was sentenced to one year in prison for extorting payments from her political advisors in exchange for continued employment.[19] In 2021, this sentence was increased to two years; in October 2022, the prison sentence was reduced to one year, but she was required to pay restitution within six months.[20]
References
edit- ^ El Telegrafo (9 January 2018). "Adrián Sandoya es el nuevo ministro de Desarrollo Urbano y Vivienda". Retrieved January 9, 2018.
- ^ BN Americas. "Ecuador names new vice president". Retrieved January 9, 2018.
- ^ Havana Times. "Ecuador Has a New Female VP". Retrieved January 9, 2018.
- ^ "María Alejandra Vicuña Muñoz | Asambleistas | Elecciones Ecuador 2013". October 4, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-10-04.
- ^ "Lenín Moreno encarga Vicepresidencia a María Alejandra Vicuña y le asigna funciones: dar seguimiento a la consulta | El Comercio". October 4, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-10-04.
- ^ "¿Quiénes son los integrantes del Gabinete de Lenín Moreno? | El Comercio". June 6, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-06-06.
- ^ a b "Psicóloga y administradora de empresas: quién es María Alejandra Vicuña, la vicepresidenta más joven en la historia de Ecuador". BBC News Mundo (in Spanish). 5 October 2017. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
- ^ BBC News. "Ecuador VP Jorge Glas sentenced for corruption in Odebrecht case". Retrieved January 9, 2018.
- ^ a b "María Alejandra Vicuña es la nueva vicepresidenta; reemplaza a Jorge Glas". El Universo (in Spanish). 2018-01-06. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
- ^ "María Alejandra Vicuña seguirá como vicepresidenta de la República". El Comercio (in Spanish). 2018-01-06. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
- ^ "Ecuador VP removed, accused of taking kickbacks from aide | Charlotte Observer". Archived from the original on 2018-12-04. Retrieved 2018-12-04.
- ^ "Ecuador VP Removed, Accused of Taking Kickbacks from Aide | Voice of America - English". www.voanews.com.
- ^ Zibell, Matías (December 5, 2018). "La "maldición" de los vicepresidentes en Ecuador: Lenín Moreno vuelve a perder a su número dos con la renuncia de María Alejandra Vicuña". BBC News Mundo.
- ^ Tiempo, Casa Editorial El (December 4, 2018). "Vicepresidenta de Ecuador salió del cargo por escándalo de corrupción". El Tiempo.
- ^ "La vicepresidenta de Ecuador renuncia tras el escándalo por cobrar un porcentaje a sus empleados". abc. December 4, 2018.
- ^ de 2018, 4 de Diciembre. "Acusada de corrupción, renunció la vicepresidente de Ecuador". infobae.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Vicepresidenta de Ecuador renuncia tras ser acusada de corrupción". Diario La Prensa.
- ^ "Ecuador: Otto Sonnenholzner, un nuevo vicepresidente de 35 años y sin filiación política". France 24. 2018-12-11. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
- ^ "María Alejandra Vicuña es condenada a un año de cárcel". La República EC (in Spanish). 2020-01-30. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
- ^ "María Alejandra Vicuña deberá cumplir un año de prisión en la cárcel". www.expreso.ec (in Spanish). 2022-10-30. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
External links
edit
Media related to María Alejandra Vicuña at Wikimedia Commons
