Faustino López Vargas (27 September 1958 – 8 October 2022) was a Mexican politician from the

Morena Morena or MORENA may refer to: Places * Morena, Madhya Pradesh, a town in central India * Morena (Lok Sabha constituency), Madhya Pradesh * Morena (Vidhan Sabha constituency), Madhya Pradesh * Morena, San Diego, California, a neighborhood * Mo ...

party. He served in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

representing the state of

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas, is a state in Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 43 municipalities. It is located in nor ...

from January 2022 until his death. He died in a car crash in

Zacatecas Zacatecas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Zacatecas, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 31 states of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Zacatecas, 58 municipalities and its capital city is Zacatecas City, Zacatec ...

Life

Medical career

López Vargas received a medical degree from the Universidad del Noreste and served as a physician at rural clinics associated with the

Mexican Social Security Institute The Mexican Institute of Social Security (, IMSS) is a Federal government of the United Mexican States, governmental organization that assists public health, pensions and social security in Mexico operating under the Secretariat of Health (Mexic ...

(IMSS) in various localities in Oaxaca, including

Santa María Xadani Santa María Xadani is a town and municipality in Oaxaca in south-western Mexico. It is part of the Juchitán District Juchitán District is located in the east of the Istmo de Tehuantepec region of the State of Oaxaca, Mexico and the easternmos ...

Ejutla de Crespo Ejutla de Crespo is a city and a municipality of the same name, in the central valleys of the Mexican state of Oaxaca. It is part of the Ejutla District in the south of the Valles Centrales Region. "Ejutla" is from the Nahuatl ''exotl'' and ' ...

Huajuapan de León Heroica Ciudad de Huajuapan de León (, meaning ''Place of Brave People'') is a city with a surrounding municipality located in the northwestern part of the Mexican state of Oaxaca. It is part of the Huajuapan District in the north of the Mixtec ...

, and

Santiago Jamiltepec Santiago Jamiltepec (Mixtec: Casandoo) is a town, and the seat of surrounding municipality of the same name, in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. It is located in the Jamiltepec District in the west of the Costa Chica Region, 30 km east of Pin ...

. In 1987, he moved to his hometown of

Aldama, Tamaulipas Aldama is a municipality of the northeastern Mexican state of Tamaulipas. According to the census of 2010, the municipality had an area of and a population of 29,470, including the town of Aldama with a population of 13,661. History The region o ...

, where he opened a private medical practice that continued until 2001. He also served as a forensic physician in Aldama and the state capital of

Ciudad Victoria Ciudad Victoria () (English: ''Victoria City'') is the seat of the Victoria Municipality, Tamaulipas, Municipality of Victoria, and the capital of the Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Tamaulipas. It is located in the Northern Mexico, n ...

and as a private physician to the National Banking Commission. In 2017 and 2019, respectively, López became affiliated with two hospitals in Ciudad Victoria, the General Hospital and Regional Specialty Hospital. He also was named coordinator of state first aid medical services in 2019.

Politics

In 1989, López Vargas was a founding member of the

Party of the Democratic Revolution The Party of the Democratic Revolution (, , PRD) is a state-level social democracy, social democratic political party in Mexico (previously national, until 2024). The PRD originated from the Democratic Current, a political faction formed in 198 ...

(PRD), serving on that party's state committee in Tamaulipas before becoming a founding member of Morena in 2014. In 2018, López was selected to serve as the alternate to

Américo Villarreal Anaya Américo Villarreal Anaya (born 23 May 1958) is a Mexican cardiologist and politician affiliated with the National Regeneration Movement and the current Governor of Tamaulipas. He previously served as a Senator for the state. Early life and ...

, who was elected to the Senate in that year's election. After Villarreal left the Senate in January 2022 in order to run for

Governor of Tamaulipas This is a list of governors of Tamaulipas since it became a state of Mexico in 1822, it includes the list of governors of Nuevo Santander (New Santander) the name of the Spanish province in northeast New Spain before the Mexican War of Independe ...

, López Vargas assumed the seat. Villarreal briefly returned to the Senate from 26–28 September 2022, but left the seat because he could not serve simultaneously as senator and governor, after which time López again returned to the Senate. Committee assignments included Legislative Studies (Second), Energy, Navy, and Health.

Death

López Vargas and his wife, Pilar Hernández, died on 8 October 2022 in an automobile crash in Trancoso, Zacatecas, while on their way to attend a government report to be given by Zacatecas senator in the city of Zacatecas. The driver lost control after puncturing a tire. Three other people were in the vehicle and suffered serious injuries. Senator Luévano's report was canceled in the wake of the news of López Vargas's death. As López Vargas was an alternate senator, the Senate seat he left behind was declared vacant, and was held on 19 February 2023 to elect a new senator and alternate. With around 70% of the popular vote,

José Ramón Gómez Leal José Ramón Gómez Leal (born 7 July 1977) is a Mexican politician affiliated with the National Regeneration Movement party. He was a local deputy of the Congress of Tamaulipas from 2010 to 2013 for the National Action Party. As well as Delega ...

of Morena was declared the victor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lopez Vargas, Faustino 1958 births 2022 deaths Senators of the LXIV and LXV Legislatures of Mexico Politicians from Tamaulipas Morena (political party) politicians Road incident deaths in Mexico 20th-century Mexican politicians