First ladies and gentlemen of Mexico

Spouse of the president of Mexico

First Gentleman of Mexico

Incumbent
Jesús María Tarriba

since 1 October 2024

Residence| National Palace of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Term length| 6 years
Inaugural holder| María Antonia Bretón (as first lady)
Jesús María Tarriba (as first gentleman)
Formation| 1917
Website| Gob.MX

The first lady of Mexico (Spanish: Primera Dama de México) or first gentleman of Mexico (Spanish: Primer Caballero de México)[1] is the informal title held by the spouse of the president of Mexico, concurrent with the president's term of office.

The position has no legal foundation and was originally started as a courtesy title. However, several holders of the title have taken on ceremonial roles during the presidential tenure of their spouses and have used the position to advocate for various causes.

Jesús María Tarriba is the current First Gentleman of Mexico as the husband of President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo.

## Role

[edit]

First Lady Angélica Rivera (2012 to 2018) at a donation drive for the victims of Hurricane Ingrid and Hurricane Manuel, as part of her role as head of the National DIF.[2]

The first lady or first gentleman is not an elected position, carries no official duties and brings no salary. Nonetheless, the title holder attends many official ceremonies and functions of state either along with or in place of the president. There is a strict taboo against the president's spouse holding outside employment during the president's sexenio. Traditionally, the first lady took an important (ceremonial) post as head of the Desarrollo Integral de la Familia (DIF) ("Integral Family Development"). However, this did not occur during the Fox administration when First Lady Marta Sahagún founded the national philanthropic organization Vamos México.

## History

[edit]

Two first ladies have been active politicians: Martha Sahagún, who married Vicente Fox during his tenure (2001–2006), had been a party activist and candidate for mayor of Celaya on the PAN party ticket, and was briefly considered a contender for PAN's nomination to run for either the Jefe de Gobierno (Governor of the Federal District) or president in the 2006 election. Margarita Zavala, wife of Felipe Calderón, was a deputy from 2003 to 2006. In the 2018 Mexican general election, she was a pre-candidate for the nomination of PAN, and then she briefly ran as an independent.[3]

Beatriz Gutiérrez Müller (2018 to 2024), wife of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, abstained from using the title of first lady. She stated it was a "role with no concrete functions or responsibilities." She also said she wanted to "serve Mexico any way she can", and that the title "first lady" is "somewhat classist".[4] Gutiérrez Müller also refused the position as head of the National DIF.[5]

## List of first ladies and gentlemen of Mexico

[edit]

Revolutionary era

Portrait  | Name  | President  | Period

|
|
|

| María Antonieta Bretón de Victoria | Guadalupe Victoria | 1824–1829
| María Guadalupe Hernández de Guerrero | Vicente Guerrero | 1829
| María de Jesús Carranco de Bocanegra | José María Bocanegra | 1829
| Guadalupe Quesada de Bustamante | Anastasio Bustamante | 1830–1832, 1837–1839, 1839–1841
| Joaquina Bezares de Múzquiz | Melchor Múzquiz | 1832
| María Juliana Azcárate de Gómez Pedraza | Manuel Gómez Pedraza | 1832–1833
| Isabel López de Gómez Farias | Valentín Gómez Farías | 1833–1834, 1846–1847
| Inés García de López de Santa Anna | Antonio López de Santa Anna | 1833–1844
| Manuela de Trebuesto y Casasola de Barragán | Miguel Barragán | 1835–1836
| Juana Fernanda Ulloa de Corro | José Justo Corro | 1836–1837
| María Antonieta Guevara y Muñiz de Bravo | Nicolas Bravo | 1839, 1843, 1846
| Refugio Almanza de Echeverría | Francisco Javier Echeverría | 1841
| Josefa Dávila de Canalizo | Valentín Canalizo | 1844
| Dolores Alzugaray de Herrera | José Joaquín de Herrera | 1844–1845, 1848–1851
| Josefa Cortés de Paredes | Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga | 1846
| Josefa Cardeña de Salas | José Mariano Salas | 1846, 1859
| Antonieta Guevara de Anaya | Pedro Ma. Anaya | 1847, 1848
| María Luisa Ozta Cotera de la Peña | Manuel de la Peña y Peña | 1847, 1848
| Guadalupe Martell de Arista | Mariano Arista | 1851–1853
| Ángeles Madrid de Bautista Ceballos | Juan Bautista Ceballos | 1853
| Refugio Alegría de Lombardini | Manuel María Lombardini | 1853
| Dolores Tosta de López de Santa Anna | Antonio López de Santa Anna | 1853–1855
| Ángeles Lardizábal de Carrera | Martín Carrera | 1855
| Pilar Valera de Díaz de la Vega | Rómulo Díaz de la Vega | 1855
| Faustina Benítez de Álvarez | Juan Álvarez | 1855
| María Baamonde de Comonfort | Ignacio Comonfort | 1855–1858
| Margarita Maza de Juárez | Benito Juárez | 1858–1871
| María de la Gracia Palafox de Zuloaga | Félix María Zuloaga | 1858
| \-  | Manuel Robles Pezuela | 1858–1859
| Concepción Lombardo de Miramón | Miguel Miramón | 1859–1860
| Felipa González de Pavón | José Ignacio Pavón | 1860
| \-  | Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada | 1872–1876
| Juana Calderón de Iglesias | José María Iglesias | 1876
| \-  | Juan N. Méndez | 1876-1877
| Delfina Ortega de Díaz | Porfirio Díaz | 1877–1880
| Laura Mantecón de González | Manuel González Flores | 1880–1884
| Carmen Romero Rubio de Díaz | Porfirio Díaz | 1884–1911
| Refugio Borneque de León de la Barra | Francisco León de la Barra | 1911
| Sara Pérez de Madero | Francisco I. Madero | 1911–1913
| María Enriqueta Flores de Lascuráin | Pedro Lascuráin | 1913
| Emilia Águila de Huerta | Victoriano Huerta | 1913–1914
| Ana María Gutiérrez de Carvajal | Francisco S. Carvajal | 1914
| Petra Treviño de Gutiérrez Ortiz | Eulalio Gutiérrez | 1914–1915
| María Concepción Garay de González Garza | Roque González Garza | 1915
| \-  | Francisco Lagos Cházaro | 1915

Post-revolutionary era

Portrait  | Name  | President  | Period

|
|
|

| Virginia Salinas de Carranza
(1861–1919) | Venustiano Carranza | 1917–1919
| Clara Oriol de la Huerta
(1884–1967) | Adolfo de la Huerta | 1920
| María Tapia de Obregón
(1888–1971) | Álvaro Obregón | 1920–1924 (1928[6])
| Natalia Chacón de Elías Calles
(1879–1927) | Plutarco Elías Calles | 1924–1927
| Hortensia Elías Chacón
(1905–1996) | 1927–1928
| Carmen García de Portes Gil
(1905–1979) | Emilio Portes Gil | 1928–1930
| Josefina Ortiz de Ortiz Rubio
(1892–1983) | Pascual Ortiz Rubio | 1930–1932
| Aída Sullivan de Rodríguez
(1904–1975) | Abelardo L. Rodríguez | 1932–1934
| Amalia Solórzano de Cárdenas
(1911–2008) | Lázaro Cárdenas | 1934–1940
| Soledad Orozco de Ávila Camacho
(1904–1996) | Manuel Ávila Camacho | 1940–1946
| Beatriz Velasco de Alemán
(1913–1981) | Miguel Alemán Valdés | 1946–1952
| María Izaguirre de Ruiz Cortines
(1891–1979) | Adolfo Ruiz Cortines | 1952–1958
| Eva Sámano de López Mateos
(1910–1984) | Adolfo López Mateos | 1958–1964
| Guadalupe Borja de Díaz Ordaz
(1915–1974) | Gustavo Díaz Ordaz | 1964–1970
| María Esther Zuno de Echeverría
(1924–1999) | Luis Echeverría | 1970–1976
| Carmen Romano de López Portillo
(1926–2000) | José López Portillo | 1976–1982
| Paloma Cordero de la Madrid
(1937–2020) | Miguel de la Madrid | 1982–1988
| Cecilia Occelli de Salinas
(1949) | Carlos Salinas de Gortari | 1988–1994
| Nilda Patricia Velasco de Zedillo
(1952) | Ernesto Zedillo | 1994–2000
| Marta Sahagún de Fox
(1953) | Vicente Fox | 2001–2006[7]
| Margarita Zavala de Calderón
(1967) | Felipe Calderón | 2006–2012
| Angélica Rivera de Peña
(1969) | Enrique Peña Nieto | 2012–2018
| Beatriz Gutiérrez de López Obrador
(1969) | Andrés Manuel López Obrador | 2018–2024
| Jesús María Tarriba Unger
(1962) | Claudia Sheinbaum | 2024–present

## Living former first ladies and gentlemen

[edit]

As of 5 August 2025, there are six living former first ladies, as identified below.

* Cecilia Occelli
served 1988–1994
born 1949 (age 75)
ex-wife of Carlos Salinas de Gortari

* Nilda Patricia Velasco
served 1994–2000
born 1952 (age 72)
wife of Ernesto Zedillo

* Marta Sahagún
served 2001–2006
born 1953 (age 72)
wife of Vicente Fox

* Margarita Zavala
served 2006–2012
born 1967 (age 58)
wife of Felipe Calderón

* Angélica Rivera
served 2012–2018
born 1969 (age 56)
ex-wife of Enrique Peña Nieto

* Beatriz Gutiérrez Müller
served 2018–2024
born 1969 (age 56)
wife of Andrés Manuel López Obrador

The most recent first lady to die was Paloma Cordero, widow of Miguel de la Madrid on May 11, 2020.

## See also

[edit]

* Mexico portal
* Lists portal

* List of empresses consort of Mexico
* List of heads of state of Mexico
* Politics of Mexico

## References

[edit]

### Notes

[edit]

1. ^ "¿Quién es Jesús María Tarriba, pareja de Claudia Sheinbaum y futuro primer caballero de México?". CNN (in Spanish). 3 June 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024.
2. ^ "Encabeza Angélica Rivera instalación de Centro de Acopio". gob.mx (in Spanish). Sistema Nacional DIF. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
3. ^ "Margarita Zavala renuncia a su candidatura para presidir México" [Margarita Zavala renounces her candidacy to lead Mexico]. El Pais (in Spanish). May 17, 2018. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
4. ^ "La esposa de López Obrador suprime la figura de primera dama en México" [Wife of Lopez Obrador abolishes the post of First Lady of Mexico], El Diario.es (in Spanish), August 4, 2018, retrieved August 24, 2019
5. ^ ""No soy presidente del DIF ni funcionaria pública": Beatriz Gutiérrez Müller tras recibir críticas en redes sociales". infobae (in European Spanish). 2 January 2021. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
6. ^ President Obregón was assassinated just after being reelected and declared President-Elect, thus he was never sworn in, and therefore she did not assume the role and was First Lady-Designate from July 1, 1928 – July 17, 1928.
7. ^ Since Vicente Fox was divorded upon assumption of the presidency, the post was vacant from December 1, 2000 to July 1, 2001, when he wed Marta Sahagún, who would then assume the role.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to First Ladies of Mexico.

* v
* t
* e

Spouses of national leaders

Republican leaders|

First ladies
and
gentlemen
(may include
non-spouses)

* Albania
* Angola
* Argentina
* Armenia
* Austria
* Azerbaijan
* Bangladesh
* Belarus
* Benin
* Botswana
* Brazil
* list
* Bulgaria
* Cameroon
* Cape Verde
* Chile
* Bolivia
* Colombia
* list
* Democratic Republic of the Congo
* Republic of the Congo
* Costa Rica
* Cuba
* Cyprus
* Czech Republic
* Djibouti
* Dominican Republic
* Ecuador
* Egypt
* El Salvador
* Ethiopia
* Gabon
* The Gambia
* Georgia
* Ghana
* Guatemala
* Guinea
* Guyana
* Haiti
* Honduras
* India
* Indonesia
* Israel
* Ivory Coast
* Kazakhstan
* Kenya
* Kyrgyzstan
* Lebanon
* Latvia
* Lithuania
* Madagascar
* Malawi
* Maldives
* Mali
* Malta
* Mauritius
* Mexico
* Moldova
* Mongolia
* Mozambique
* Myanmar
* Namibia
* Nicaragua
* Niger
* Nigeria
* North Korea
* North Macedonia
* Pakistan
* Palau
* Panama
* Paraguay
* Peru
* Philippines
* Poland
* Portugal
* Romania
* Russia
* Rwanda
* Senegal
* Sierra Leone
* Slovakia
* Slovenia
* South Africa
* South Korea
* Sri Lanka
* Suriname
* Syria
* Taiwan
* Tajikistan
* Tanzania
* Timor-Leste
* Trinidad and Tobago
* Tunisia
* Turkey
* Turkmenistan
* Ukraine
* United States
* list
* Uruguay
* Uzbekistan
* Venezuela
* Zambia
* Zimbabwe

|

Spouses or
companions

* China
* Estonia
* Finland
* France
* Germany
* Hong Kong
* Iceland
* Ireland
* Italy
* Philippines
* Singapore
* Soviet Union
* Vietnam

Monarchs|

* Andorra
* Bhutan
* Belgium
* Denmark
* Japan
* Jordan
* Liechtenstein
* Luxembourg
* Malaysia
* Monaco
* Netherlands
* Norway
* Oman
* Spain
* Sweden
* Tonga
* Thailand
* United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms

Commonwealth
governors-general|

* Australia
* Canada
* New Zealand

Heads of government|

* Armenia
* Australia
* Belize
* Cambodia
* Canada
* Croatia
* Germany
* India
* Iran
* Ireland
* Israel
* Japan
* Malaysia
* Mauritius
* New Zealand
* Sweden
* Thailand
* United Kingdom

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template