Marta Sahagún de Fox
| Marta Sahagún de Fox | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| First Lady of Mexico | |
|
In role July 2, 2001 – November 30, 2006 |
|
| President | Vicente Fox |
| Preceded by | Nilda Patricia Velasco de Zedillo |
| Succeeded by | Margarita Zavala |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Marta María Sahagún Jiménez April 10, 1953 Zamora, Michoacán, Mexico |
| Spouse(s) | Manuel Bribiesca Godoy (div. 2000) Vicente Fox (m. 2001) |
| Children | Manuel, Jorge Alberto and Fernando Bribiesca Sahagún |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Marta Sahagún de Fox (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmarta sa(a)ˈɣun de foks]; born Marta María Sahagún Jiménez on April 10, 1953) served as the First Lady of Mexico from July 2, 2001, when she married President Vicente Fox, until he left office in November 2006. Her tenure was marked by her outspoken views and active role in her husband's administration, in contrast to previous First Ladies of Mexico, as well as several controversies regarding her nonprofit Vamos México foundation and her family's business dealings.
Sahagún was born in Zamora, Michoacán, the second of six children, to Dr. Alberto Sahagún de la Parra, who founded Zamora’s San José Hospital and a nursing school, and Ana Teresa Jiménez Vargas. For some years she worked as an English teacher at the Universidad Lasallista Benavente. Her first marriage was to veterinarian Manuel Bribiesca Godoy, with whom she ran a veterinary wholesale supplies business in Celaya, Guanajuato. They had three children: Manuel, Jorge Alberto and Fernando. They separated in 1998 and divorced in 2000.
Sahagún has been an active member of the National Action Party since 1988. She unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Celaya and met Vicente Fox, who named her as his spokeswoman for his government in Guanajuato. Sahagún continued to serve as his press secretary during his successful presidential campaign and for his first year in office. Sahagún married Fox in 2001.
In September 2001, Sahagún created the Vamos México (Let’s Go Mexico) foundation, which allocates funds to help marginalized people of the country and other organizations such as the Legion of Christ. Vamos México was inaugurated with a concert by Elton John in Chapultepec Castle, which drew criticism for using a national monument for a private function. The foundation came under national and international scrutiny after an investigation by The Financial Times found that less than half of the foundation's donations went toward charitable efforts. The Financial Times criticized the foundation's lack of transparency in the management of its resources, the source of its donations and its high overhead costs, despite its access to presidential staff, resources and donated office space. The Mexican federal auditor also opened an investigation into whether the national lottery and the president's office had improperly channeled public funds into the foundation. The lottery's then-director, Laura Valdés, is the sister of a board member of Vamos México.
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