Shirley Valeria Ripoll Fraga (born 13 October 1982) is a Uruguayan trade unionist, civil servant, television personality and politician of the National Party.[1] On June 30, 2024, she was announced as Álvaro Delgado Ceretta's running mate for the 2024 general election.[2]
Valeria Ripoll | |
|---|---|
 Ripoll in 2022 | |
| General Secretary of ADEOM | |
| In office September 2017 – 13 September 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Facundo Cladera |
| Succeeded by | Silvia Tejera |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Shirley Valeria Ripoll Fraga 13 October 1982 Montevideo, Uruguay |
| Political party | National Party (2023–present) |
| Other political affiliations | Communist Party of Uruguay (2010–2017) |
| Children | 3 |
Early life and career
editRipoll was born on 13 October 1982 in Montevideo, to Shirley Fraga, an ANCAP official, and Néstor Ripoll, a non-commissioned officer of the National Navy.[3] The eldest daughter in a Catholic family, she has a younger sister, Joana. Raised in the Brazo Oriental neighborhood of Montevideo, she attended the Colegio Sagrado Corazón of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart.[4]
In her teens, to help with expenses at home, she studied piano and music theory, and worked as a music teacher in a kindergarten. She also served as a manager at a McDonald's restaurant and as a clerk at the National Navy headquarters, where she rose to the rank of seaman.[1] After graduating from high school she enrolled at the University of the Republic to study psychology, but she did not finish her degree.[3] She later studied to become an accounting administrative assistant.[2]
In 2007 she signed up for a call for tenders from the Intendancy of Montevideo and got a position at the Municipal Planetarium.[4] During this time she joined the Asociación de Empleados y Obreros Municipales (ADEOM), the workers' union of the municipality of Montevideo.[5] Ripoll also worked as an official at the Botanical Garden and at the Montevideo Philharmonic Orchestra for a number of years.[6]
While working as a civil servant, she held different union positions. From 2015 to 2017 she was a member of the union's culture secretariat and hosted its radio program. In September 2017 she took office as general secretary of ADEOM, which exponentially increased her public exposure.[7] In this position she was critical of the Broad Front administrations of Montevideo headed by Daniel Martínez and Carolina Cosse.[8] In the 2019 union elections, her group received the most votes, obtaining a majority in the union executive.[9]
In the 2021 union elections, her group once again had the most votes.[10] In 2023 she announced her departure from union activity.[11] Until July 2024, when she had already entered party politics, she presided over the National Federation of Municipal Employees and was a member of the executive secretariat of the Plenario Intersindical de Trabajadores – Convención Nacional de Trabajadores trade union center.[12]
Political career
editDespite coming from a right-wing family, in 2010 while beginning union activity, she joined the Communist Party of Uruguay at the invitation of one of her union colleagues.[13] However, in 2017 she disaffiliated and left the party due to disagreement with the party's lenient position regarding the administration of Daniel Martínez as Intendant of Montevideo, of which she was critical.[14] She has stated that she was asked to be less harsh in her criticism because Martínez was going to be the Broad Front presidential candidate in 2019.[5][15] In addition, she has reported that after refusing to do so and leaving the party, she suffered vandalism at her residence, until she needed police custody.[16]
In mid-August 2023, she announced her departure from union activity and her entry into party politics, as a member of the center-right National Party.[17] She endorsed Álvaro Delgado Ceretta for president and began working as an advisor under commission in Martín Lema's seat—occupied by his first substitute—in the Chamber of Representatives.[18] In February 2024 she announced that she was joining D Centro, a centrist sector of the National Party, along with leaders such as Vice President Beatriz Argimón and Vice Minister of the Interior Pablo Abdala.[19] In the 2024 presidential primaries she was a leader of the Lista 5 electoral list, which supported the candidacy of Delgado Ceretta.[20]
Following Álvaro Delgado Ceretta's landslide victory in the National Party primary on June 30, Ripoll was announced as his running mate and vice presidential candidate for the general election.[21] The decision caused great surprise and made headlines in most newspapers the following day, due to her past as a member of the Communist Party and a trade unionist, and because she had only been in the National Party for almost a year.[22] Among the reasons given by Delgado's team for the selection of Ripoll is to attract more centrist or center-left voters who do not intend to vote for a Broad Front "more shifted to the left".[23][24]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–2024 | Esta boca es mía[5] | Herself | Panelist |
| 2022 | ¿Quién es la máscara?[6] | Contestant; 12th Eliminated |
Personal life
editRipoll has three children, two girls and a boy.[7] As the latter was diagnosed with autism, she has become involved in activism, promoting the Fundación Abrazo Azul, a non-profit autism awareness organization.[9]
References
edit- ^ a b "Valeria Ripoll abandona Adeom y se suma al Partido Nacional para apoyar a Álvaro Delgado". Montevideo Portal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-02-23.
- ^ a b "Valeria Ripoll será la compañera de fórmula de Álvaro Delgado". Telenoche (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ a b "La vida de Valeria Ripoll, sus objetivos en Adeom y lo que aprendió de su hijo con autismo". El Espectador 810 (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-02-23.
- ^ a b Voces, Semanario (2023-04-29). "Valeria Ripoll, Secretaria General de ADEOM: No estoy en ningún partido y me siento una persona libre". Semanario Voces (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-02-23.
- ^ a b c "Valeria Ripoll sobre su nuevo rol en Esta boca es mía: "Quiero salir de la etiqueta de zurda o facha"". EL PAIS. 2022-02-04. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
- ^ a b ""¿Quién es la máscara?": una popular dirigente sindical sorprendió detrás de Cactus". EL PAIS. 2022-07-22. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
- ^ a b "Ripoll acusó a Adeom de persecución política; el sindicato respondió que fue ella quien hizo el reglamento". subrayado.com.uy (in Spanish). 2024-02-09. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
- ^ "La de Martínez fue la peor administración que nos tocó, sostuvo Ripoll". Portal Medios Públicos (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ a b "Valeria Ripoll trabaja para crear fundación de apoyo a padres de niños con autismo". Radio Sarandí 690 AM (in Spanish). 2020-02-18. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
- ^ "Valeria Ripoll ganó las elecciones en ADEOM y obtuvo seis cargos". subrayado.com.uy (in Spanish). 2021-10-30. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Ripoll deja Adeom, se suma al Partido Nacional y lanza una crítica al FA, al que acusó de tomar 'represalias'". Teledoce.com (in Spanish). 2023-08-15. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Ripoll hizo sus últimos reclamos como gremialista siendo candidata a vice del PN y recrudecen críticas al FA". EL PAIS (in Spanish). 2024-07-12. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "La definición política de Valeria Ripoll: "No soy una persona liberal, tampoco soy de izquierda"". EL PAIS (in Spanish). 2024-07-04. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ Universal, Radio (2021-09-25). "Desde miguelitos hasta fuego en su casa: Valeria Ripoll tras los atentados que sufrió". 970 Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Valeria Ripoll: "La última elección no voté, no podría haber votado a Martínez y a Lacalle Pou no lo conocía"". Radio Sarandí 690 AM (in Spanish). 2024-02-02. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Ripoll contra el PCU: "Hay muchos violentos que se ponen una remera violeta y siguen siendo violentos"". El Observador (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Valeria Ripoll deja el sindicalismo y se une al Partido Nacional". LARED21 (in Spanish). 2023-08-15. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Valeria Ripoll comenzará a trabajar en el Parlamento y estará en coordinación con Lema". EL PAIS (in Spanish). 2023-08-16. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Valeria Ripoll se unió a D Centro, y aseguró que el sector del Partido Nacional peleará Montevideo al Frente Amplio". la diaria (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Con listas terminadas, blancos fijan su mapa interno para 2024: ¿cómo son las alianzas de los candidatos?". EL PAIS (in Spanish). 2024-05-30. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Valeria Ripoll es la candidata a vicepresidente de Álvaro Delgado en el Partido Nacional". El Observador (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Sebastián Da Silva sobre la elección de Ripoll como candidata a vice: "Me gustan candidatos con más Masoller"". EL PAIS (in Spanish). 2024-07-01. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Un acto de fe llamado Valeria Ripoll". El Observador (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-15.
- ^ "Ripoll inicia su candidatura respaldándose en Argimón y blancos empiezan a convencerse de decisión de Delgado". EL PAIS (in Spanish). 2024-07-04. Retrieved 2024-07-15.