Ayelén Mazzina Explained

Ayelén Mazzina
Office:Minister of Women, Genders and Diversity
President:Alberto Fernández
Term Start:13 October 2022
Term End:10 December 2023
Predecessor:Elizabeth Gómez Alcorta
Successor:Office abolished
Office2:Secretary of Women, Diversity and Equality of San Luis
Governor2:Alberto Rodríguez Saá
Term Start2:12 December 2019
Term End2:10 October 2022
Predecessor2:Adriana Bazzano
Birth Date:7 September 1989
Birth Place:San Luis, Argentina
Party:Justicialist Party

Ximena Ayelén Mazzina Guiñazú[1] (born 7 September 1989)[2] is an Argentine political scientist and politician who served as the country's Minister of Women, Genders and Diversity from 2022 to 2023, in the cabinet of President Alberto Fernández.

She previously served as Secretary of Women, Diversity and Equality of San Luis Province, under Governor Alberto Rodríguez Saá, from 2019 to 2022, and as a member of the San Luis City Council. Mazzina belongs to the Justicialist Party.

Career

In the 2019 general election, Mazzina ran for one of San Luis's two seats in the National Chamber of Deputies as part of the Frente de Todos list; she was the second candidate, behind Carlos Ybrhain Ponce. The Frente de Todos list received 43.87% of the vote and came second, not enough for Mazzina to be elected.[3] She had previously served as a member of the San Luis City Council and as a member of the Justicialist Party national congress representing San Luis.

Mazzina was appointed as Secretary of Women, Diversity and Equality in the provincial government of San Luis on 12 December 2019 by governor Alberto Rodríguez Saá.[4] As secretary, she was in charge of organising the 35th Plurinational Encounter of Women, Lesbians, Trans-Travestis, Bisexuals, Intersexuals and Non-binary people in Huarpe, Comechingón and Ranquel territory.[5] She also led the efforts to reform San Luis' provincial electoral law to follow the gender parity law adopted at the federal level in 2017.[6]

In October 2022, following the resignation of Elizabeth Gómez Alcorta as Minister of Women, Genders and Diversity of Argentina, president Alberto Fernández appointed Mazzina as minister in her stead. It was one of three changes made in the cabinet that same day, alongside Kelly Olmos (appointed as labour minister) and Victoria Tolosa Paz (social development minister). At 33, she became the youngest cabinet minister at the time, as well as the first openly lesbian cabinet minister of Argentina.[1]

Personal life

Mazzina counts with a professorship degree on political science from the Universidad de La Punta (ULP); she is also a magister student on public policy administration at the Catholic University of Córdoba.[7]

She is a lesbian.[4] She prefers to be referred to by her nickname, "La Aye".[8]

Notes and References

  1. News: Ayelén Mazzina, la funcionaria de Rodríguez Saá que se hace cargo del Ministerio de las Mujeres tras la polémica salida de Gómez Alcorta. Clarín. 10 October 2022. 11 October 2022. es.
  2. News: Quién es Ayelén Mazzina, la nueva ministra de Mujeres, Géneros y Diversidad. laNoticia1. 10 October 2022. 11 October 2022. es.
  3. News: Ayelén Mazzina: "Luchamos hasta el final, lo dimos todo, gracias por el trabajo y la militancia". Agencia San Luis. 27 October 2019. 11 October 2022. es.
  4. News: Ayelén Mazzina, secretaria de la Mujer de San Luis: "Volví a nacer cuando pude decir que me gustaban las chicas". 12 September 2022. 11 October 2022. es. Peker. Luciana.
  5. News: Ayelén Mazzina: quién es la nueva ministra de Mujeres, Géneros y Diversidad. La Nación. 10 October 2022. 11 October 2022. es.
  6. News: Ayelén Mazzina: "Hay muchas cosas por las que tenemos que seguir luchando". Página 12. 11 October 2022. Curia. Dolores. es.
  7. Web site: Ayelen Mazzina. Fundación Huésped. 11 October 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221011052308/https://eventos.huesped.org.ar/speaker/ayelen-mazzina/. 11 October 2022. es.
  8. News: Feminista, puntana y "cumbiera intelectual": Quién es Ayelén Mazzina, nueva ministra de Mujeres, Géneros y Diversidad. Perfil. 10 October 2022. 11 October 2022. es.