First Ladies of Chile

First Lady of Chile (Spanish: Primera Dama de Chile) is the unofficial title for the wife of the President of Chile. In colonial times the wives of the Royal Governors were known as Presidentas, title that was in use during the first half of the 19th century, but was slowly superseded by the newer of First Lady. Because this position is traditionally filled by the wife of the President, there is no clarity for the case of the spouse of a female president. In these cases, the title First Gentleman (Primer Damo, colloquially) has been proposed, but never actually used (to date, the only female president is divorced.)

The First Ladies fulfill a protocole function as hostesses, and since 1925, they have had their own private office and staff, and preside over different charitable organizations, such as Ropero del Pueblo (1947–1958), CEMA Chile (1967–1990), Fundación Nacional de Jardines Infantiles, Fundación de la Familia, and others. While female President Michelle Bachelet worked, the position (renamed Director of the social-cultural area of the Presidency) was been filled as an administrative position under direct appointment of her. This social-cultural area of the Presidency comprises a series of non-profit foundations: Integra; Promoción y Desarrollo de la Mujer, Prodemu (Women's promotion and development); Fundación de la Familia (Family foundation); Tiempos Nuevos (New times), MIM (Interactive museums); Matucana 100 (Theater promotion); Orquestas Juveniles e Infantiles de Chile (Youth Orchestras); Artesanías de Chile (Arts and crafts) and Todo Chilenter^[1].

List of First Ladies

Footnotes and references