Vázquez Garced was born in Santurce, San Juan and raised in Guaynabo. Her parents worked in a factory, her father as a security guard, her mother died at the age of 53. Her father has been remarried for twenty years. She has a younger brother and an older sister. She began her primary studies at the Ramón Marín and Margarita Janer schools in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. Vázquez became interested in law at an early age. She said in an interview that she used to watch TV shows like Hawaii Five-O with her father, which led her to realize she wanted to follow a career along that line. Vázquez studied at the University of Puerto Rico, where she completed her bachelor's degree. After that, she completed her Juris doctor at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico School of Law.
Career
During the 1980s, Vázquez worked for the Puerto Rico Department of Housing. She then worked as a district attorney for the Puerto Rico Department of Justice for 20 years. Vázquez specialized in cases of domestic and gender violence. She also worked in the Criminal Division for the Bayamón Prosecutor's office. In 2010, Vázquez was appointed to replace Ivonne Feliciano as the head of the Office for Women's Rights of the island. On November 30, 2016, Governor-elect Ricardo Rosselló nominated her for the position of Secretary of Justice of Puerto Rico. She was confirmed and sworn in January 18, 2017.
Governor of Puerto Rico
Vázquez Garced was initially expected to become governor of Puerto Rico after the resignation of Ricardo Rosselló on August 2, 2019. She was met with opposition, with critics calling for her resignation due to allegations of corruption and inability to deal with domestic violence on the island. Protests against her proposed succession as governor took place, the most notable of these being the Somos Más march, Spanish for "We Are More", a title alluding to a popular chant during the protests calling for Rosselló's resignation. The hashtag #WandaRenuncia began trending on Twitter soon after Rosselló announced his intention to resign. Vázquez said on Twitter that she had no interest in becoming governor, and that she would take the position only if she were constitutionally required to. On July 31, Rosselló announced that he was appointing Pedro Pierluisi as the new Secretary of State; the secretary of state supersedes the secretary of justice in the order of succession. On August 1, however, the Puerto Rican Senate blocked Pierluisi from being confirmed as secretary of state in time for Rosselló's resignation on August 2. Upon Rossello's resignation, Pierluisi succeeded to the governorship in a de facto manner instead of Vázquez. However, he was not confirmed by the Senate, calling into question the validity of his governorship. On August 7, 2019, the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico ruled that Pierluisi was sworn in on unconstitutional grounds and removed him from office, effective at 5 p.m. AST. At that time, Vázquez became the second female governor of Puerto Rico. Vázquez stated she wants to recover Hurricane Maria relief funds, and review all government contracts to ensure they are managed correctly, free of corruption. She said she wants to work with President Donald Trump to help the island of Puerto Rico and its 3.2 million American citizens. She stated all contracts signed by Ricardo Rosselló would be reviewed. At the same time, HUD stated that hurricane funds would be delayed to Puerto Rico due to corruption, and incapacity to absorb funds for projects, respectively. On March 12, 2020 she declared a state of emergency in Puerto Rico and activated the Puerto Rican National Guard as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico.
