María Auxiliadora Delgado


María Auxiliadora Delgado San Martín was an Uruguayan civil servant, health advocate, and wife of President Tabaré Vázquez. She served as First Lady of Uruguay from 2005 to 2010. She regained the position on 1 March 2015, when Vázquez was sworn in for a second non-consecutive term.

Early life

Auxiliadora met her husband, Tabaré Vázquez, when he was just 16 years old, and she was 19 years old. She worked for the Caja de Jubilaciones y Pensiones for 32 years before her retirement.

First Lady

Auxiliadora's signature initiative as First Lady was a national program to improve dental health and oral hygiene. She oversaw the national campaign, with an emphasis on students from rural schools and communities. Her program, Plan Bucal, which was launched in 2005, has provided dental services to more than 100,000 children across Uruguay, as of 2015. In December 2015, the General Assembly of Uruguay honored her with an award for her work.
The First Lady rarely granted interviews during her tenures.

Death

She died of a heart attack on 31 July 2019. Her remains were buried at Cementerio de La Teja, Montevideo.