Juan Fernando López Aguilar

Juan Fernando López Aguilar (born 10 June 1961) is a Spanish Socialist Workers' Party politician, and former Minister of Justice in the government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. He also represented Las Palmas in the congress between 2000 and 2004.

Early life and education

López Aguilar was born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. He holds a Ph.D. in Law from the University of Bologna (Italy) and for a long time he has been a Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. He also holds a master's degree in Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He funded his studies largely by working as a newspaper caricaturist and comic-book illustrator.

Political career

Member of the Spanish Parliament, 1996–2007

As a member of the Spanish parliament, López Aguilar served as his parliamentary group’s spokesperson on home affairs.

Candidate for President of the Canary Islands, 2006–2007

In November 2006, López Aguilar was chosen as the socialist candidate for the Presidency of the Canary Islands Government. He won the 2007 elections, but his majority was insufficient to defeat opposition manoeuvring that prevented him becoming leader of the regional government. Instead, he was later nominated to head the PSOE list in the 2009 European elections.