Rafael Rey

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

Rafael Rey Rey
Member of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru Board of Directors
Incumbent
Assumed office October 27, 2016
Appointed by	Peruvian Congress
Peruvian Representative to the Andean Parliament
In office July 26, 2006 – July 26, 2016
Minister of Defense
In office July 11, 2009 – September 14, 2010
President	Alan García
Prime Minister	Javier Velásquez
Preceded by	Antero Flores Aráoz
Succeeded by	Jaime Thorne León
Ambassador of Peru to Italy
In office February 17, 2009 – July 11, 2009
Preceded by	Carlos Roca Cáceres
Succeeded by	Augusto Ferrero Costa
Minister of Production
In office July 28, 2006 – October 14, 2008
President	Alan García
Prime Minister	Jorge Del Castillo
Member of Congress
In office July 26, 1995 – July 26, 2006
Constituency	Lima
Member of the Democratic Constituent Congress
In office November 26, 1992 – July 26, 1995
President of National Renewal
In office September 1, 1992 – July 30, 2012
Preceded by	Party founded
Succeeded by	Party dissolved
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office July 26, 1990 – April 5, 1992
Constituency	Lima
Personal details
Born	(1954-02-26) 26 February 1954 Lima, Peru
Nationality	Peruvian
Political party	Independent (2012-present)
Other political affiliations	Force 2011 (non-affiliated member / 2010-2011) National Renewal (1992-2012) Liberty Movement (1987-1992)
Alma mater	University of Piura Catholic University of Peru
Occupation	Politician Political commentator
Profession	Industrial Engineer

Rafael Rey Rey (born February 26, 1954) is a Peruvian engineer, political commentator and politician who currently serves as member of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru Board of Directors since 2016. Throughout his political life, he served in the Peruvian Congress from 1990 to 2006. During the Second presidency of Alan García, he was appointed Minister of Production, Ambassador to Italy and Minister of Defense.

In 2010, Rey was selected by Keiko Fujimori as her first running mate in the 2011 general election with the Force 2011 ticket alongside Jaime Yoshiyama, being ultimately defeated by Ollanta Humala's Peru Wins ticket. Simultaneously, he was reelected to the Andean Parliament.

Rey is recognized as one of the most representative conservative politicians of Peru. He founded and led the now-defunct National Renewal, a conservative party which formed part of the National Unity Alliance for the 2001 and 2006 general elections.

Early life and education

Rafael Rey was born to engineering professor Ricardo Rey Polis and Elsa Rey Elmore. He started his education at the Catholic college of San Isidro, owned by Marist Brothers. From 1971 to 1979 Rey studied Industrial Engineering at the University of Piura, where his father was first Rector, and the Catholic University of Peru. From 1982 to 1990 he was CEO of Crowley Peru S.A.

Since 1991 Rey has been Executive President of the NPO Pro-Educación.

First political experience

In 1987 he joined the pro-market Liberty Movement of Nobel laureate writer Mario Vargas Llosa which became part of the 1988 established broad liberal-conservative Democratic Front FREDEMO. Rey represented his party as Deputy National Secretary for Ideology and Culture in 1989 and Departmental Secretary for Lima from October 1989 to August 1992. In the polarised general elections of 1990 he was elected Member of the Chamber of Deputies for FREDEMO whereas the leader of the alliance, Vargas Llosa, was defeated in the presidential race by Alberto Fujimori. After Fujimori's self-coup during the constitutional crisis in 1992 and the decline of FREDEMO, Rey left the Liberty Movement and formed his own party, the National Renewal in August 1992, which he has chaired ever since.

Congressman

Rafael Rey was elected Member of the so-called Democratic Constitutional Congress under the new unicameral constitution in 1992. He was re-elected Congressman for the National Renewal in 1995 and in 2000 as part of the alliance Avancemos led by Federico Salas who was afterwards appointed Prime Minister by President Fujimori. In the 2001 early elections caused by the corruption crisis leading to Fujimori's resignation, Rey contested as part of the Christian Democrats-led National Unity alliance of presidential candidate Lourdes Flores and was re-elected to the Congress. In 2006 he was voted one of five Peruvian representatives to the Andean Parliament, again on the ballot of Flores' National Unity.

Minister

As President Alan García of the social democratic APRA party did not have a stable majority, he and his changing Prime Ministers tried to win multi-partisan support. Thus they appointed Rey twice to their governments, as Minister of Production from 2006 to 2008, and as Minister of Defense for a short period from 2009 to 2010. In between he served as Ambassador to Italy for from February to July 2009. His participation in Garcia's government led to the break with Flores and her oppositional National Unity Alliance.

Presidential election 2011

In the general election 2011 Rafael Rey changed sides and allied with Fujimori's daughter Keiko. He was candidate for First Vice President on the Force 2011 ticket. Keiko Fujimori lost to left-wing Ollanta Humala in the second round on June 5. Nevertheless, Rey was re-elected to the Andean Parliament as the Force 2011 representative with more than 470,000 votes, the best result for any candidate nationwide.

Personal life

Rey is a numerary member of Opus Dei.