Soledad Chávez de Chacón (August 10, 1890 – August 4, 1936) was the first woman elected to be the

Secretary of State of New Mexico The secretary of state of New Mexico is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of government of the U.S. state of New Mexico. Twenty-six individuals have held the office of secretary of state since statehood. Since 1923, every elected Ne ...

, and the first Hispanic woman elected to statewide office in the United States. She served as acting Governor of New Mexico for two weeks in 1924, becoming the second woman to act as chief executive of a U.S. state.

Early life and education

Soledad Chávez was born in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

, in 1890. Her parents were Melitón Chávez (1856–1932) and Francisca Baca de Chávez (1864–1923), both members of prominent New Mexico families. She had one older sister, Piedad Chávez Sandoval (1888–1969). The sisters spent part of their childhood at the

Salvador Armijo House The Salvador Armijo House is a historic hacienda in the Old Town neighborhood of Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was originally built in the 1840s by Salvador Armijo (1823–1879), a prosperous merchant who was the nephew of Governor Manuel Armijo. ...

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...

, which was built in the 1840s by their maternal great-grandfather, Salvador Armijo. The house is now listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. with Chávez graduated from

Albuquerque High School Albuquerque High School is a public high school near Downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. It is a part of the Albuquerque Public Schools district. Enrollment at AHS stands at 1,741. AHS was named the 43rd best high school in the state ...

in 1908 and then completed an accounting program at the Albuquerque Business College. She married Ireneo Eduardo Chacón (1885–1969) in 1910 and had two children, Adelina and Santiago.

Career in politics

Chacón was first elected to the office of Secretary of State in 1922, two years after the 19th Amendment guaranteed women the right to vote. The people of

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

nicknamed her "Lala" during her time in office. She served another two-year term in 1924. Chacón became acting governor of New Mexico for two weeks from June 21 to July 5, 1924, when Governor

James F. Hinkle James Fielding Hinkle (October 20, 1862March 26, 1951) was an American banker, politician and the sixth governor of New Mexico. Early life Hinkle was born in Franklin County, Missouri on October 20, 1862. He studied at the University of Mis ...

left the state to attend 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 1852 ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Lieutenant Governor

José A. Baca José A. Baca (June 23, 1876 – May 17, 1924) was an American politician from New Mexico. He served as the lieutenant governor of New Mexico from January 1, 1923, until his death on May 17, 1924. Early life Baca was born in Las Vegas, New Mexic ...

had died earlier in the year, leaving the Secretary of State next in the line of succession. She was the second woman to serve as chief executive of a U.S. state after Carolyn B. Shelton, who acted as governor of

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

for three days in 1909. Upon taking office, Chacón told reporters "I am anticipating no serious problems during Governor Hinkle's absence, but should any occur I don't believe I shall have any difficulty in handling them." She undertook several actions as governor, including signing a requisition for

New Mexico National Guard The New Mexico National Guard is the militia of the U.S. state of New Mexico. Comprising the New Mexico Army National Guard and the New Mexico Air National Guard, it is part of the National Guard of the United States, a reserve force under both ...

funding and issuing a pardon. She was elected to the New Mexico House of Representatives in 1934, becoming the fourth Hispanic woman to hold that office. She served on several committees, including as chair of Rules and Orders of Business. In 1936, partway through her first term, she died of peritonitis at the age of 46.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chacon, Soledad Women state legislators in New Mexico 1890 births 1936 deaths Secretaries of State of New Mexico Hispanic and Latino American women in politics Politicians from Albuquerque, New Mexico Democratic Party members of the New Mexico House of Representatives 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American women politicians Deaths from peritonitis