Carlos M. "Charlie" Hernández López (born February 19, 1965) is a Puerto Rican

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

affiliated with the Popular Democratic Party (PPD). He was member of the

Puerto Rico House of Representatives The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico () is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The House, together with the Senate, control the legislative branch of the go ...

from January, 2001 until December, 2016. From 2001 to 2012 he represented

District 19 A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

(which includes the cities of Mayagüez and San Germán). In 2012, he was reelected, this time as a Representative At-large until 2016. After his retirement from politics in 2016, he reopened his law firm and became a professor at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico.

Early years and studies

Charlie Hernández was born February 19, 1965, in Mayagüez. During his childhood, he was part of the

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. After graduating high school, Hernández was admitted to the

University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez The University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus (UPRM) or Recinto Universitario de Mayagüez (RUM) in Spanish (also referred to as Colegio and CAAM in allusion to its former name), is a Public university, public land-grant university in Mayagüez ...

. During his time there, he was part of the Student Council and the Academic Senate. He was also founder and director of the student newspaper ''Campus Colegial''. Because of his academic excellence, he received the award for the Most Distinguished Student of the Department of Social Sciences in 1986. He was also part of the

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during the three years in which he finished his bachelor's degree in political science. After participating in the summer internship of the

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of the

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, Hernández received a scholarship to continue postgraduate studies in Public Administration sponsored by the

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, the

Woodrow Wilson Foundation The Woodrow Wilson Foundation was an educational non-profit created in 1921, organized under the laws of New York, for the "perpetuation of Wilson's ideals" via periodic grants to worthy groups and individuals. Franklin D. Roosevelt was the chai ...

, and then the

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. After graduating with honors from the Faculty of Law of the University of Puerto Rico, he continued his studies, obtaining a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in Public Administration from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs of the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...

. During those years, he realized investigations about the health service and political parties in

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, which were eventually published. He also completed a thesis about the Territories of

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and the territorial policy of the United States.

Professional career

After returning to Puerto Rico, Hernández practiced law specializing in civil litigation and constitutional rights. In January, 2000, he was appointed as an Assistant to the mayor of the Municipality of Mayagüez in charge of community development.

Political career

Hernández was first elected to the

House of Representatives of Puerto Rico The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico () is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The House, together with the Senate, control the legislative branch of the go ...

at the 2000 general election, representing District 19. During his first term, he was Chairman of the Judiciary the Committee and Special Committee of the Revision of the Civil Code. He was also a member of the Committees of Federal and International Affairs, Government, Capital Development, and others. In

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, Hernández was reelected. During that time, he served as Minority Speaker for his party in several committees as well as being member of others. After being reelected for a third term at the 2008 general election, Hernández again served as Minority Speaker of his party in several committees. In 2012, Hernández decided to run as a Representative At-large at the 2012 general election. He was elected, being the third candidate with most votes from his party. After that, Hernández was appointed as Majority Leader for his party. After concluding his mandate in 2016, and after sixteen years in office, Hernández decided to retire from politics. Since, he returned to practice law with offices in San Juan and Mayagüez concentrating in civil litigation and constitutional law. In addition, Hernández became a professor in the graduate program in Public Affairs at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico.

Personal life

Hernández was married to journalist Damaris Suárez for approximately ten years. They have a son together (Diego Hernández Suárez). In December 2012, they both announced they were getting divorced. In 2018, he married Farrah M Rodríguez.

References

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External links

Charlie Hernández Official biographyCharlie Hernández Profile
on

WAPA-TV WAPA-TV (channel 4) is a Spanish-language independent television station in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is the flagship and namesake station of Guaynabo-based WAPA Media Group. WAPA-TV maintains studio facilities on Luis Vigoreaux Avenue ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez, Charlie Living people 1965 births Popular Democratic Party members of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico Politicians from Mayagüez, Puerto Rico University of Puerto Rico alumni Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs alumni 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico