Sila María Calderon
As the first woman elected to the office of Governor of Puerto Rico,
Sila Maria Calderon has broken the Latin stereotype that most women
belong at home. Elected mayor of the island's capital city, San Juan,
in November 1995, Calderon ran the city and helped developed the city's
infrastructure and tourism industry. In November 2000, Calderon,
running under the Popular Democratic Party (or known as the PPD in its
Spanish acronym) won the governorship after two decades of rule by the
opposition party that favors making the island the 51st state of the
United States. Calderon, who has three children from her first
marriage, daughter Sila Mari, son Francisco Xavier and daughter María
Elena González Calderón, continues to be a mother in addition to her
responsibilities as governor. In becoming the first woman to become
Governor of Puerto Rico, Calderon has appointed both of her daughters
to take over the role of First Lady.