Ronald de Lugo (August 2, 1930 – July 14, 2020) was an American politician. He was the first Delegate from the

United States Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and a territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

. Ron de Lugo's parents were Puerto Ricans. His grandfather owned a hardware store and gun dealership in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas. De Lugo's parents were living in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

at the time he was born and also lived in the Virgin Islands as civil servants. He was born in

Englewood, New Jersey Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from portions of Ridgefield Township and the remaining portions of Engle ...

, and attended the Colegio San José in the Río Piedras district of

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...

. De Lugo served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a program director and announcer for the Armed Forces Radio Service. He worked at WSTA radio in St. Thomas and also at WIVI in St. Croix. He was a Virgin Islands territorial Senator, a

Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the principal executive leadership board of the United States's Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. According to the party charter, it has "general responsibility for the affairs of the ...

man, the administrator for St. Croix, the representative of the Virgin Islands to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and a delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...

s in 1956, 1960, 1964 and 1968. After the position of Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives was created for the Virgin Islands, De Lugo was the first to be elected to the office, in 1972. He served as a Democrat, from January 3, 1973 to January 3, 1979. De Lugo chose not to seek re-election as Delegate in 1978 so as to pursue a bid for Governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands. He challenged incumbent Governor

Juan Francisco Luis Juan Francisco Luis (July 10, 1940 – June 4, 2011) was a Puerto Rican-U.S. Virgin Islander politician who served as the third elected List of governors of the United States Virgin Islands, Governor of the United States Virgin Islands, and the te ...

in the 1978 gubernatorial election. De Lugo chose Eric E. Dawson, a

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

in the Legislature of the Virgin Islands, as his running mate for

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

. Luis defeated de Lugo in the general election on November 7, 1978. Luis and Lt. Gov. Henry Millin won 10,978 votes (59.2%); De Lugo and Dawson placed second with 7,568 votes (40.8%). The Luis-Millin ticket won all three of the U.S. Virgin Islands' main islands. De Lugo was elected Delegate again, serving from January 3, 1981 to January 3, 1995; he did not seek re-election in 1994. During this time in office De Lugo chaired the committed on creating the

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into a Commonwealth. After retiring, he was a resident of St. Croix. De Lugo died on July 14, 2020 at an assisted living facility in

Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, less than a month before his 90th birthday.

Legacy

The Ron de Lugo Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse on St. Thomas is named after him.

References

External links

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lugo, Ron De 1930 births 2020 deaths Colegio San José alumni Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from the United States Virgin Islands Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from the United States Virgin Islands Democratic Party of the Virgin Islands politicians Hispanic and Latino American politicians Politicians from Englewood, New Jersey People from Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands Military personnel from Bergen County, New Jersey United States Virgin Islands military personnel Senators of the Legislature of the United States Virgin Islands American politicians of Puerto Rican descent 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives

Legacy

See also

References

External links