As the international secretary for the Spanish socialist party PSOE, she was well known and admired by colleagues in PES and in socialist parties around Europe.
PES president Sergei Stanishev said:
“Carme had strong progressive values and she defended them with determination. Her position as the first woman to lead the Ministry of Defence in Spain, her commitment to her job and her political talents will always be an inspiration for those of us who continue her fight for a fairer and more equal society.
“Carme was and will always remain a role model for women, for younger generations, and for all of us who had the honour and pleasure of working alongside her.”
Background
Carme Chacón died aged 46.
A member of the Party of the Catalan Socialists (PSC) since she was 18 years old and awarded with a degree in Law by the University of Barcelona, Carme was a councillor in her native town of Esplugues de Llobregat (1999-2007), Member of the Congress for 5 terms (2000-2016), Vice-President of the Congress (2004-2007), Minister of Housing (2007-2008) and the first woman to become Spanish Minister of Defense (2008-2011).
Throughout her career in the party she also held different positions of responsibility, such as Secretary of Education, University, Culture and Research and Spokesman of the Executive of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero (2003-2004). Carme was also the first woman candidate to lead o party in our 38th Congress in 2012, and from 2014 to 2016 led the Secretariat for International Relations. Since June of last year she had left front-line politics and devoted himself to advocacy and teaching, her other two passions along with politics.
