Teresa Gallo Zavala
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| Teresa María Gallo Zavala | |
|---|---|
| |
March 9, 2021 | |
| Vice President | Vacant |
| Predecessor | Elías Sosa Domínguez |
October 10, 2020 — March 9, 2021 | |
| President | Elías Sosa Domínguez |
| Predecessor | Cecilia Gallo Zavala |
October 31, 2008 – October 10, 2012 | |
| President | Elías Sosa Domínguez |
| Predecessor | Office established |
| Successor | Ramiro Suárez Mastroianni |
October 10, 2012 – October 10, 2020 | |
| Predecessor | Gervasio Guerrero González |
| Successor | Julio Alamilla Quintana |
October 10, 2012 – October 10, 2020 | |
| Born | April 1, 1983 Bacalar, Quintana Roo, Mexico |
| Nationality | Mexican |
| Political party | Independence |
| Domestic partner | Alfonso Vela Simón (2001–2006) Adán Reyes Ruíz (2012–2015) Sal Merlot (since 2018) |
| Children | 1 (step-child) |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Teresa María Gallo Zavala (born April 1, 1983) is the 5th and current President of Arrecife, serving since March 9, 2021. Gallo previously served as 5th Vice President from 2020 to 2021, as Arrecife's inaugural Secretary of External Relations from 2008 to 2012, and as a member of Congress (serving as Majority Whip) from 2012 until her election to the vice-presidency. She is the first woman to serve as President of Arrecife, the first woman to serve as a Cabinet Secretary, the first woman to serve in a congressional office (as Majority Whip), and was the second woman to serve as Vice President of Arrecife, having been preceded in the office by her younger sister, Cecilia Gallo Zavala.
Gallo assumed the presidency following the death of incumbent, Elías Sosa Domínguez on March 9, 2021. She had served as Acting President from February 27 until her succession to the presidency.
Early life
Teresa María Gallo Zavala was born on April 1, 1983 and is the oldest of two daughters born to Esteban Hilario Gallo Muñoz (born 1955) and Leonor Juárez Marroquín (born 1959). Her parents separated when Teresa was 6 years old. Her mother moved with her two young daughters from Bacalar to Chetumal, where the girls were primarily raised by their grandmother, Rebeca Juárez de León (born 1924; died 2008), due to their mother having to work.
Gallo attended school in Chemutal where she studied drama and acting. She eventually changed majors to tourism where she met Alfonso Vela Simón. Remaining close friends with Vela, she was one of the first people to join Arrecife after he and Elías Sosa Domínguez declared its independence.
Secretary of External Relations, 2008–2012
Sosa nominated Gallo to be Arrecife's first Secretary of External Relations on October 25, 2008. This was the day after independence was declared, leading to some delay in her nomination being discussed by Congress. Congress unanimously approved Gallo's appointment on 6 days later on October 31.
Gallo was a strong supporter of the Sosa–Vela doctrine, regularly voicing support for President Sosa's ideas. She also suggested and pursued ideas of her own, including drafting the External Relations Law which was passed by Congress in January 2009 and remains one of the nation's oldest laws. However, she was criticized by some in Cabinet and Congress for not being proactive enough, specifically in publicizing Arrecife and reaching out to other micronations. Despite this, her closeness to allies Sosa (who controlled the executive) and Vela (who controlled the legislature) meant her position was relatively safe throughout Sosa's presidency.
When Sosa was constitutionally required to stand down from the presidency in the 2010 election, she declined Vela's offer to reappoint her to the External Relations secretariat, and chose instead to stand for Congress.
Congresswoman, 2012–2020
The Independence Party held a majority of seats from 2008 and, upon her entering Congress, Gallo was appointed Majority Whip by new Majority Leader and former President Sosa.
For all her success in drafting the External Relations Law of 2009, Gallo proved ineffective in drawing up legislation in Congress. Instead, as part of her partnership with Majority Leader Sosa, Gallo was charged with ensuring legislation would pass, rather than ensuring its creation. She proved an incredibly effective whip, ensuring party discipline to such an extent that in the entirety of 2009–10, there were no dissenting votes from the party members. Gallo occasionally even successfully whipped members of opposition parties into backing government bills, as was the case with the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Law of 2014.
Despite her record for towing the party line, opposition from Gallo could kill government bills. When President Vela pushed ahead with his Budget and Revenue Bill in 2016, Gallo opposed it despite the party leadership (including the Majority Leader) supporting it. As such, other party members felt no obligation to support. The bill failed to pass by 2 votes. This open dissent saw then President Vela secretly call for Gallo to be removed as Majority Whip, but she ultimately remained on at the behest of Majority Leader Sosa.
This close partnership with Sosa, and his continual reluctance to replace her despite party calls, was considered to be the "nail in the coffin" of the Sosa–Vela partnership which had stood for over a decade since the establishment of Arrecife. When Sosa announced he would seek a third term as President in 2020, many correctly assumed he would chose Gallo to be his Vice President.
During her time in Congress, Gallo achieved the second-highest attendance level, being present for 93% of sittings.
Vice-presidency, 2020–2021
Upon her election as Vice President, Gallo automatically became de jure President of Congress. Throughout her campaign she had promised to discontinue the partisan nature of her time as Majority Whip. As such, upon assuming the vice-presidency and presidency of Congress, she announced at the opening session that while she would remain a member of the Independence Party, she would be officially non-partisan.
Acting President
On February 26, 2021, President Sosa was found unresponsive at his home by his sisters and subsequently hospitalized. In as her capacity as Vice President, and in accordance with the Constitution, Gallo became Acting President. Congress declared President Sosa "temporarily incapacitated" on February 27 and granted Gallo full presidential powers until such time as the President could return to his duties. However, Sosa did not regain consciousness and died 11 days later.
Presidency
Gallo became President of Arrecife upon the death of Elías Sosa Domínguez on March 9, 2021. Upon assuming office, she became the first woman to serve as president and the first person to succeed to the presidency. She released a statement upon Sosa's death praising him as a "giant in the history of Arrecife" and that she would "endeavor to live and serve by his example".
She also stated that all Cabinet secretaries would remain in situ, and that she would nominate a Vice President in due course.
Personal life
Shortly after they met, Gallo began dating Alfonso Vela Simón. The continued dating until 2006, though they remained good friends. From 2012 until 2015 she dated fellow Congressperson, Adán Reyes Ruíz. They became engaged in 2014 but the relationship broke down the following year after over Gallo's reluctance to have children. Since 2018, Gallo has been dating French–American Sal Merlot (born 1974) and is step-mother to his son by a previous relationship.
Gallo is a practicing Catholic and attends mass at least once a week.