David Bernier
| David Bernier | |
|---|---|
 Bernier in 2013 | |
| 23rd Secretary of State of Puerto Rico | |
|
In office January 2, 2013 – October 30, 2015 | |
| Governor | Alejandro García Padilla |
| Preceded by | Kenneth McClintock |
| Succeeded by | Víctor Suárez Meléndez |
| President of the Puerto Rico Olympic Committee | |
|
In office 2008–2012 | |
| Preceded by | Héctor Cardona |
| Succeeded by | Sara Rosario |
| Secretary of Sports and Recreation | |
|
In office January 2, 2005 – September 2008 | |
| Governor | Aníbal Acevedo Vilá |
| Preceded by | Jorge Fuentes |
| Succeeded by | Henry Neumann |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
David Enrique Bernier Rivera January 21, 1977 Patillas, Puerto Rico, U.S. |
| Political party | Popular Democratic Party |
| Other political affiliations | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Alexandra Fuentes (2007–present) |
| Children |
Adrián David Miranda |
| Alma mater |
University of Puerto Rico, Cayey University of Puerto Rico, San Juan |
| Nickname(s) | Quique[lower-alpha 1] |
David Enrique Bernier Rivera[lower-alpha 2] (born January 21, 1977) is an odontologist and politician who served in various roles in public service in Puerto Rico. Bernier first served as executive director of the Office of Youth Affairs of Puerto Rico, a post he left to be confirmed as the youngest Secretary of Sports and Recreation of Puerto Rico in history, due, in part, to his own personal trajectory in sports as a competitive athlete. Four years later, he was unanimously confirmed as Secretary of State of Puerto Rico for the administration of Alejandro García Padilla.
Ideologically, Bernier is affiliated with two parties: one within Puerto Rico and another within the United States as a whole. Within Puerto Rico, he currently presides the Popular Democratic Party (PPD in Spanish) and he is a sovereigntist—a member of a faction within the PPD that advocates for Puerto Rico to enter a compact of free association with the United States rather than continuing the status quo. At that level of national politics, Bernier is a member of the Democratic Party of the United States and a staunch supporter of President Barack Obama.
Outside politics Bernier was a member of the Puerto Rican national fencing team, in which he represented the island in the Central American and Caribbean Games and in the Pan American Games. He also served as president of the Puerto Rico Olympic Committee.
In his personal life, Bernier is married to Alexandra Fuentes, a locally prominent TV host. They have two children.
Early life
Bernier was born in Patillas, the fifth of six children, to Luis Bernier, a professor at the University of Puerto Rico at Ponce, and Cecilia Rivera, a nurse.[1][3] He and his older brother, Víctor, attended the María Dávila Semidey School in Patillas, where they received their primary education. After this, they enrolled in the school of sports of the Albergue Olímpico located in Salinas. Bernier then became a member of the National Fencing Selection of Puerto Rico, during his school years, and represented Puerto Rico in events worldwide. He was also president of the first graduating class of the Albergue Olímpico school.[4]
Bernier later studied at the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey where he received a bachelor's degree in natural sciences, graduating magna cum laude.[2] He then completed a doctorate in odontology at the University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus.[2][4] He was also president of the student council and was also named president of the Association of Athletes of High Endurance.
Sports life
As a member of the National Fencing Selection of Puerto Rico, Bernier was the Panamerican Youth Champion for three consecutive years. He also won the Bronze Medal in the 1998 Central American and Caribbean Games, celebrated in Maracaibo, Venezuela.
Bernier and his brother went to Carolina, where they trained under trainer Gilberto Peña. In the 2003 Pan American Games celebrated in the Dominican Republic, his brother, Victor won the Bronze Medal in Individual Épée Fencing and the brothers Bernier and Peña (Jonathan and Marcos) won a Bronze Medal in Team Épée Fencing. Victor became the first Puerto Rican to win a medal in fencing for his country and the team (consisting of the Bernier and Peña brothers), the first team to win a medal for the island by beating the United States team 45-40.
Bernier was delegate and standard bearer for the Puerto Rican Olympic Committee in the 2004 Summer Olympics celebrated in Athens, Greece. That same year, Bernier was inducted into the Puerto Rican Sports Hall of Fame.
On September 2008, Bernier resigned to his position as Secretary of Sports and Recreation to run for President of the Puerto Rico Olympic Committee.[5] The election for president of the Olympic Committee took place on October 1, 2008. Bernier won the seat receiving 26 votes from the Federation delegates versus 13 votes in favor of incumbent Héctor Cardona.[6]
As president of the Olympic Committee, Bernier dealt with the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games in Mayagüez, the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, and the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.[7]
Public service career
In 2003, Governor Sila Calderón appointed Bernier as Executive Director of the Office of Youth Affairs. On September 26, 2003, the Senate of Puerto Rico confirmed Bernier for the position.
On January 4, 2005, he resigned his post at the Office of Youth Affairs after being named Secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Sports and Recreation by Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá. He was unanimously confirmed in that post by the Senate of Puerto Rico, presided over by Kenneth McClintock, who later preceded him as Secretary of State. In 2006, after the Senate failed to confirm two nominees to replace him at the Office of Youth Affairs, the Governor nominated him once again to that job, which he held simultaneously with the position of Secretary of Sports and Recreation, once he was again confirmed by the Senate.
On January 31, 2008, Bernier became president of the committee organizing the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games. Following his designation he announced that he would discuss with the mayors of adjacent municipalities to help in the process.[8]
Secretary of State
On November 15, 2012, Governor-elect Alejandro García Padilla appointed Bernier to succeed Kenneth McClintock as Puerto Rico's 23rd Secretary of State, which also entails the role of lieutenant governor.[7] At the moment, Bernier was preparing to be reelected as President of the Olympic Committee when he was approached by García Padilla for the position.[9] He was sworn into his recess appointment by Puerto Rico Supreme Court Chief Justice Federico Hernández Denton and he has since been unanimously confirmed by the Senate of Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico House of Representatives. Holding the title of Secretary of State entails serving in the dual role of Lieutenant Governor. As such, he has served as Acting Governor whenever Governor García Padilla has been out of Puerto Rico. At least once during his term, the acting governorship has been delegated to Attorney General Luis Sánchez Betances when both the Governor and Bernier have been absent, and when General Sánchez Betances has also been away, Secretary of the Treasury Melba Acosta has served as Acting Governor. He submitted his resignation as Secretary of State on October 25, 2015, effective October 30, 2015. His Deputy Secretary, Javier González, will become Acting Secretary until a new Secretary of State is appointed and qualified.
As Secretary of State, he continued and expanded several digitalization projects begun by his predecessor, created the Arturo Morales-Carrión International Relations Internship Program and coordinated the Campus Puerto Rico project to promote the Commonwealth as a destination for college students from the rest of the United States and Latin America.
He is a member of the National Association of Secretaries of State and the National Lieutenant Governors Association, two organizations that held conventions in Puerto Rico during his predecessor Kenneth McClintock's incumbency.
Head of state hosted as Secretary of State
As Secretary of State, Bernier has hosted the following head of state:
- Danilo Medina, President of the Dominican Republic – January 2013
Travels as Secretary of State
Secretary Bernier has traveled to the following Latin American foreign countries while in office:
Gubernatorial campaign
On December 16, 2015, Bernier announced he would run for governor under the PPD during the 2016 general elections. His announcement came two days after incumbent governor Alejandro García Padilla announced he would not seek re-election. It would be the first time Bernier runs for an elective office in politics. If elected Governor, he would be the second youngest in Puerto Rico's history.
Personal life
Bernier married actress and host Alexandra Fuentes in 2007. They have two children together: a son, Adrián David,[10] and a daughter, Miranda.[11] Bernier has stated that reading the work of Gabriel García Márquez influenced his personal ideology by helping him understand the "Puerto Rican reality with the Latin American context".[12] Under his leadership, the Department of State held an homage to the author on April 23, 2014.
See also
Notes
- ↑ Caquías Cruz (2015; in Spanish) "En el hogar de la familia Bernier Rivera, en la urbanización San Benito de este municipio, había ayer unos padres nerviosos ante la expectativa del anuncio que en la tarde de hoy dará el quinto de sus seis hijos, al que llaman Quique."[1]
- ↑ This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Bernier and the second or maternal family name is Rivera.[2]
References
- 1 2 Caquías Cruz, Sandra (2015-12-16). "Júbilo y expectativa ante el anuncio de David Bernier". El Nuevo Día (in Spanish). Retrieved 2015-12-16.
- 1 2 3 Biografía, Secretario de Estado, Hon. David E. Bernier Rivera (in Spanish), Department of State of Puerto Rico, retrieved August 3, 2013
- ↑ Ruiz, Gloria (November 15, 2015). "David Bernier anunciaría mañana su candidatura". El Nuevo Día.
- 1 2 "David Bernier: del deporte a la política". El Nuevo Día. November 16, 2012.
- ↑ Cortés, Ricardo (September 10, 2008). "Acevedo Vilá reconoce la labor de Bernier". El Nuevo Día.
- ↑ Carlos González (2008-10-01). "Bernier barrió en la elección a presidente del Copur" (in Spanish). Primera Hora. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-01.
- 1 2 "Bernier será el nuevo Secretario de Estado". El Nuevo Día. November 15, 2012.
- ↑ Alex Figueroa Cancel (2008-02-01). "Bernier dio el sí". Primera Hora. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
- ↑ Del Valle, Sara (November 15, 2012). "El COPUR podría tener la primera mujer presidenta de su historia". El Nuevo Día.
- ↑ Héctor Aponte Alequín (February 16, 2007). "Primera Hora: Salsa Estudiantil con Fin Educador".
- ↑ "Nace la hija de Alexandra Fuentes y David Bernier". Primera Hora. December 27, 2010.
- ↑ Fullana Acosta, Mariela (2014-04-23). "Puerto Rico celebra la obra de García Márquez". Primera Hora (in Spanish). Retrieved 2015-12-16.