Salvador Valdés Mesa

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Valdés and the second or maternal family name is Mesa.

Salvador Antonio Valdés Mesa (Spanish: [salβaˈðoɾ anˈtonjo βalˈdes ˈmesa]; born 13 June 1945) is a Cuban politician^[1][2] and former trade union leader. He has been the First Vice President of Cuba since April 2018 and is a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of Cuba.^[3] He was elected to succeed Miguel Díaz-Canel as First Vice President of Cuba on 19 April 2018.^[1][4]

Salvador Valdés Mesa
Vice President of Cuba
Incumbent
Assumed office 10 October 2019
President	Miguel Díaz-Canel
Preceded by	Rafael Guas Inclán (1959)
First Vice President of the Council of State
In office 19 April 2018 – 10 October 2019
President	Miguel Díaz-Canel
Preceded by	Miguel Díaz-Canel
Succeeded by	Post abolished
Vice President of the Council of State
In office 24 February 2013 – 19 April 2018 Serving with Gladys María Bejerano Portela, Mercedes López Acea, José Ramón Machado Ventura and Ramiro Valdés
President	Raúl Castro
Preceded by	Esteban Lazo Hernández
Succeeded by	Beatriz Jonson Urrutia
Minister of Labor and Social Security
In office 2 March 1995 – 28 December 1999
President	Fidel Castro
Preceded by	Francisco Linares Calvo
Succeeded by	Alfredo Morales Cartaya
Personal details
Born	(1945-06-13) 13 June 1945 (age 80) Amancio, Cuba
Political party	26th of July Movement (1961–1965) Communist Party of Cuba (1965–present)
Spouse	Julia Piloto Saborit

Biography

Salvador Valdés Mesa with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku, 28 February 2023

Salvador Valdés was part of the Association of Young Rebels since 1961, after the triumph of the Cuban Revolution. He was a leader of the Workers' Central Union of Cuba and the Communist Party of Cuba. He served as Minister of Labor and Social Security between 1995 and 1999, when he was elected first secretary of the PCC in the province of Camagüey. He has been a deputy of the National Assembly of People's Power since 1993, he is a member of the Political Council of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and a member of the Council of State (first for Santa Cruz del Sur, then Güines starting in the 9th legislature) where he holds one of the five Vice Presidencies.^[5][6]