Leopoldo López Gil

For other people named Leopoldo López, see Leopoldo López (disambiguation).

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

Leopoldo López Gil (pronounced [le.oˈpoldo ˈlopes ˈxil]; born 20 October 1944)^[1] is a Spanish-Venezuelan politician who was elected as a Member of the European Parliament in 2019.^[2]

Leopoldo López Gil MEP
Member of the European Parliament for Spain
Incumbent
Assumed office 2 July 2019
Personal details
Born	Leopoldo López Gil (1944-10-20) 20 October 1944 (age 79) Caracas, Venezuela
Citizenship	Venezuela Spain (since 2015)
Political party	People's Party (2019–present)
Other political affiliations	Popular Will (2009–present)
Spouse	Antonieta Mendoza Coburn
Children	3, including Leopoldo López
Alma mater	Columbia University

Political career

López Gil is the father of Venezuelan dissident Leopoldo López. He was granted Spanish citizenship by the Government of Mariano Rajoy in December 2015.^[3][4] He ran 12th in the People's Party (PP) list for the 2019 European Parliament election in Spain in replacement of Ángel Garrido, who renounced to be a PP candidate and went to support Citizens.^[5]

López Gil has been a Member of the European Parliament since the 2019 European elections. In parliament, he has since been serving on the Subcommittee on Human Rights. In addition to his committee assignments, he is part of the parliament's delegations to the EU-Chile Joint Parliamentary Committee and to the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly.^[6]

Political positions

In a joint letter with 15 other MEPs from various political groups, López Gil urged the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell in early 2021 to replace the European Union's ambassador to Cuba for allegedly siding with the country's Communist leadership.^[7]

References

1. Sánchez, Felipe (16 February 2018). "Leopoldo López Gil: "El error de la oposición ha sido creer en la buena fe del chavismo"". El País.
2. "Lista de los 54 eurodiputados elegidos este domingo en España". La Vanguardia. 26 May 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2019.
3. "El Gobierno confirma la entrada de Lilian Tintori y su hija menor en España". El Confidencial. 4 June 2016.
4. Ayllón, Luis (24 May 2016). "La nacionalidad española a familiares de Leopoldo López, una medida más simbólica que práctica". ABC.
5. Junquera, Natalia (26 April 2019). "El PP ficha al padre del opositor venezolano Leopoldo López para sus listas europeas". El País.
6. Leopoldo López Gil European Parliament.
7. Hans von der Burchard (February 25, 2021), MEPs urge EU to fire ambassador to Cuba Politico Europe.