José Montilla

Infobox President
name = José Montilla Aguilera


order = 128^th President of the Generalitat de Catalunya
term_start = November 28, 2006
term_end =
vicepresident = Josep-Lluís Carod-Rovira
predecessor = Pasqual Maragall
successor =
order2 = Mayor of Cornellà de Llobregat
term_start2 = 1985
term_end2 = April 17, 2004
lieutenant2 =
predecessor2 = Frederic Prieto
successor2 = Antonio Balmón i Arévalo
order3 = 13th Minister of Industry
term_start3 = April 17, 2004
term_end3 = September 8, 2006
president3 = José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
predecessor3 = Juan Costa Climent
successor3 = Joan Clos
birth_date = birth date and age|1955|01|15
birth_place = Iznájar, Córdoba
party = Socialists' Party of Catalonia
spouse = Anna Hernández
children = Three sons and two daughters
occupation = Politician
alma_mater =
religion =

José Montilla Aguilera (born January 15, 1955 in Iznájar, Córdoba, Spain) is the current president of the Generalitat de Catalunya. He has been the First Secretary of the Partit dels Socialistes de Catalunya since June 18, 2000, and a member of the Federal Executive Committee and the Federal Committee of the PSOE since July 23, 2000. He served as minister of Industry, Tourism and Trade of the government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero from April 18, 2004 until September 9, 2006. He is married and has five children.

Childhood and youth (1955-1978)

At the age of sixteen, he moved from his native Andalusia to Catalonia and settled in Sant Joan Despí.

His higher education began with vocational training, but later he studied Law for one year and Economics for two years at the University of Barcelona. He himself has said that he gave up his university career as he was working and studying at the same time.

Local politics (1978-2004)

Having joined the Socialists' Party of Catalonia in 1978, two years later he became a member of the party's National Council.

At the age of 25, he was appointed Deputy mayor for Local Taxation in Sant Joan Despí, where he was also the spokesman of the Socialist group on the council. Subsequently, between 1985 and April 2004, he was mayor of Cornellà de Llobregat. In the 1999 elections and again in 2003 he was re-elected with an absolute majority.

In 1988, after the creation of the Consells Comarcals (District Councils), he was elected president of the District Council of Baix Llobregat, a post he occupied until late 1997. He became a member of the Diputació de Barcelona (Provincial Council) in 1983 as Provincial Deputy for Public Works. In 1987, he was appointed second vice-president of the Diputació and in 1991 he became delegate president for Agriculture and the Environment, a post to which he was appointed again in 1995.

In 1999, he was appointed First Vice-president, and he was President of the Diputació from July 1, 2003.

In 1994, he was elected Secretary for Organization of his party, and he has been First Secretary of the party since 18 June 2000.

Minister (2004-2006)

After the 2003 election to the Parliament of Catalonia and the constitution of the "Tripartite Government" of the Socialists' Party of Catalonia (PSC), Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya and Iniciativa per Catalunya Verds and his appointment as a central government minister in 2004, he became the PSC strong-man in the central government in Madrid.

His appointment in April 2004 as minister for Industry, Trade and Tourism meant he resigned all his posts in the local administration. He combined his work as minister with the post of First Secretary of the PSC and member of the Federal Executive of the PSOE.

Return to Catalan politics

After Pasqual Maragall announced that he would not stand again as candidate for president of the Generalitat de Catalunya, the National Committee of the PSC elected him [ [http://www.swissinfo.org/spa/internacional/agencias/detail/El_Consejo_Nacional_del_PSC_confirma_a_Montilla_como_candidato.html?siteSect=143&sid=6897562&cKey=1152970919000 Noticia de la elección en Swiss Radio Internacional el 15 de julio de 2006] ] as candidate for the presidency of Catalonia in the elections of November 1, 2006. In these elections no party obtained an absolute majority, and the PSC won only the second-largest number of seats after CiU; however, the PSC again reached an agreement with Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya and Iniciativa per Catalunya to form a coalition government, with Montilla at its head. He officially took office as president on Tuesday, November 28, 2006, and he is the first President of the Generalitat in modern times to have been born outside Catalonia.

External links

* [http://www.montillapresident.cat/page.asp?id=12 Campaign website]

References