Juan R. Melecio Machuca

Juan Ramón Melecio Machuca (May 29, 1934 – February 9, 2022)[1] was a Puerto Rican lawyer who was the longest-serving Director of the Office of Legislative Services of Puerto Rico, from 1981 to 1988. He was subsequently appointed a Superior Court judge by Governor Rafael Hernández Colón.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Melecio and the second or maternal family name is Machuca.

Political career

Earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Puerto Rico School of Law. In the 1990s he was nominated as a tri-partisan consensus candidate to serve as chairman of the Puerto Rico State Elections Commission. Served in the United States Army.

A former member of the pro-status quo Popular Democratic Party, he surprised political observers in 2003 when he announced his conversion as a statehooder and accepted an invitation to serve as the chairman of former Governor Pedro Rosselló's 2004 campaign to return to the Governor's Mansion, La Fortaleza, for a third non-consecutive term.

He served as senior advisor to the gubernatorial campaign of former Resident Commissioner Luis Fortuño, who was Rosselló's successful running mate when the former governor lost in 2004, and was subsequently appointed by Governor Fortuño to head Puerto Rico's Trade Office in the Dominican Republic.

He was one of a handful of politicians who served in all three branches of the Government of Puerto Rico, the Legislative, Judicial and Executive branches.

Early life

Melecio was born on May 29, 1934, in Vega Alta, Puerto Rico and raised by his paternal grandmother.[2]

Death

He died on February 9, 2022, at the age of 87. Was inserted at the Puerto Rico National Cemetery in Bayamón, Puerto Rico.[2]

Legacy

The Puerto Rico State Elections Commission building in San Juan, Puerto Rico was named Juan R. Melecio.[3]

References
  1. "Fallece el exjuez Juan Melecio Machuca". Telemundo Puerto Rico (in Spanish). February 9, 2022. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  2. "Fallece Juan R. Melecio, expresidente de la CEE". Primera Hora (in Spanish). February 9, 2022. Archived from the original on February 10, 2022. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
  3. "Edificio de la Comisión Estatal de Elecciones tendrá el nombre de Juan R. Melecio".


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