Jorge Santini
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Jorge Santini
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| In office January 2, 2001 – Incumbent |
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| Preceded by | Sila Calderón |
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| Born | March 11, 1960 San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Political party | New Progressive Party (PNP) |
| Spouse | Irma Garriga |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | University of Puerto Rico (BA) Inter American University (JD) |
| Profession | Lawyer, Politician |
Jorge Santini Padilla (born March 11, 1960 in San Juan, Puerto Rico) is a Puerto Rican politician and current Mayor of San Juan. Santini is affiliated with the New Progressive Party (PNP) and is the Vice President of the Party.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Childhood and Military Career
Born on March 11, 1960, Santini is the third son of Nicolás Santini and Ivonne Padilla. He has three brothers. Santini studied in the public school system of Puerto Rico, graduating in 1978.
In 1975, Santini joined the United States Marine Air Cadet Corps, reaching the rank of Lieutenant Colonel at the State Guard of the Puerto Rico National Guard. He is assigned to the program Judge Advocate General Corp.
[edit] Education and early career
Santini received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Puerto Rico (1982) and later received a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree, cum laude, from the Inter American University Law School (1987). In 1986, he became a partner at the law firm of Miranda Cárdenas & Córdova, where he specialized in medical malpractice suits. In 1987, he was accepted as member of the Puerto Rico American Bar Association and Federal Bar Association.
Santini practiced law at the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States. In 1994, he started serving as Legal Advisor to Governor of Puerto Rico Pedro Rosselló until 1996.
[edit] Political career
In 1996, Santini was elected to the Senate of Puerto Rico, representing the senatorial district of San Juan. Santini served as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee in this capacity.
In 1999, Santini entered the race for Mayor of San Juan and challenged Senate President Charlie Rodriguez in an NPP primary. Rodríguez had been the choice of the party leadership, but Santini proved to have more popular appeal. Buoyed by polls showing he would have a better chance of defeating a PDP candidate in the general election, Santini won the primary by a nearly three-to-one margin. Santini then went on to defeat Popular Democratic Party candidate Eduardo Bhatia in the 2000 elections. Santini sought reelection in 2004 and again defeated Bhatia in a close election.
In his sixth year in office as mayor, Santini began inaugurating major projects, such as the $28 million world-class Natatorium swimming and diving complex, the San Juan Golf Academy, a sports-oriented magnet school, and a bilingual municipal magnet school. Santini also created San Juan's Ronald Reagan Autism-Specialized Day Care Center better known as "Centro Ronald Reagan para Desarrollo Integral del Niño Especializado en Autismo". He is now proposing a light-rail extension of the heavy-rail Tren Urbano into Old San Juan. He is credited with attracting a talented cabinet, including Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority Executive Director Miguel Cordero and former Government Development Bank of Puerto Rico President Lourdes Rovira as Vice Mayor, Police Colonel Adalberto Mercado and Sports and Recreation Director Maria Elena Batista.
In 2007, Santini was rumored to be a possible candidate for Governor of Puerto Rico in the event that NPP president and former Governor Pedro Rosselló chose not run against then Resident Commissioner Luis Fortuño in 2008. However, Rosselló announced on April 28, 2007 that he would seek the NPP nomination for Governor. Santini announced on May 13, 2007, that he would seek a third term as Mayor of San Juan in the 2008 elections. He ran unopposed within the NPP so he was not burdened by a primary campaign, and faced then PDP Rep. Ferdinand Pérez in the 2008 general elections, whom he beat handily.
In the NPP primaries in March 2008, Santini's candidate for Governor, Dr. Pedro Rosselló, lost the election and one of his candidates for Senator, Edward Moreno, also lost the party's primary. However his other candidates Kimmey Rashke, Albita Rivera, Jorge Navarro, Nuno Lopez and Liza Fernandez were elected to conform his San Juan legislative team. Santini met with the new NPP President and Governor candidate, Luis Fortuño in order to try and unite the party towards the 2008 general election, which Fortuño went on to win by a landslide.
On the 2008 Puerto Rican general election, Santini defeated Ferdinand Pérez (PPD) and Luis Piñero (PIP) for his third term as Mayor. He is the longest running Mayor of the city.
[edit] Personal life
Santini married Irma Garriga on August 23, 1986. They have three children: Odette (b. 1987), Jorge Andrés (b. 1996), and Amanda (b. 2003).
