- Maurice Ferre
-
Maurice Ferre 
32nd and 34th Mayor of Miami In office
April 19, 1973 – August 17, 1973Preceded by David T. Kennedy Succeeded by David T. Kennedy In office
November 8, 1973 – November 14, 1985Preceded by David T. Kennedy Succeeded by Xavier Suarez Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the 91st District In office
March 1967 – March 1968Preceded by Richard R. Renick Succeeded by Richard R. Renick Personal details Born June 23, 1935
Ponce, Puerto RicoPolitical party Democratic Spouse(s) Mercedes Ferre Residence Miami, Florida Alma mater University of Miami Website ferre2010.com Maurice A. Ferre (born June 23, 1935) is a former six-term Mayor of Miami. Ferre was the first United States mayor born in Puerto Rico and the first Hispanic Mayor of Miami. He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2010 elections for the U.S. Senate seat for Florida vacated by Mel Martinez for the Democratic primary.
Contents
Early years
Ferre, born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, was born into a wealthy Puerto Rican family. He was the son of businessman José Ferré and nephew of the former governor of Puerto Rico Luis A. Ferré. Ferre's father José visited Miami, Florida in the 1920s and wondered why the city did not have any tall buildings.[1] He then ventured into construction and real estate development in Miami. Ferre was born when José and his family returned to his hometown, Ponce in Puerto Rico.
Maurice Ferre served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1967–1968.[2] He served as mayor of Miami from 1973–1985.
From 1993 to 1996, Ferre was Vice-Chairman of the Dade County Board of Commissioners. He has been active in national political campaigns and he was a member of several presidential advisory boards. Ferre has also worked as a banker and business consultant and has held various research and teaching posts.
On December 20, 1995, Francisco Ferré Malaussena, Mariana Gomez de Ferre, and Felipe Antonio Ferre Gomez, the son, daughter-in-law, and grandson of Maurice Ferre, died when American Airlines Flight 965 crashed into a mountain in Colombia.[3][4]
In November 2001, Maurice Ferre lost his bid to be reelected Mayor of Miami.[5]
Later years
Ferre is on a fellowship at Princeton University and is writing a book about the contributions Hispanics have made to the American culture. Ferre is one of the driving forces behind the INTERMESTIC (stands for "International" – "Domestic") dialogue, which attempts to seek consensus regarding Puerto Rico's political status problem from an "international" as well as "domestic" point of view. He most recently spoke about this effort to deal with Puerto Rico's political status in an address to the Puerto Rico Senate as keynote speaker during the Governors' Day special session on February 16, 2006.[6]
In October 2009, he announced that he was running for the U.S. Senate seat from Florida.[7]
See also
- List of famous Puerto Ricans
References
- ^ The Ferre Family: Puerto Rican by Birth, Yanqui in Spirit
- ^ http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/FileStores/Web/HouseContent/Approved/Public%20Guide/Uploads/Documents/house_counties_final.pdf
- ^ "The List of the 164 People on Flight 965," The New York Times
- ^ "CONGRESSIONAL RECORD—Extensions of Remarks," U.S. Government Printing Office
- ^ "Ego Without End." Miami New Times.
- ^ Puerto Rico's political status
- ^ http://blogs.tampabay.com/buzz/2009/10/kendrick-meeks-version-of-marco-rubio.html
External links
Categories:- Puerto Rican people of Catalonian descent
- 1935 births
- Living people
- Mayors of Miami, Florida
- People from Ponce, Puerto Rico
- Puerto Rican politicians
- University of Miami alumni
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
