Josep Borrell

Josep Borrell
Official portrait, 2020
Vice-President of the European Commission
Incumbent
Assumed office 1 December 2019
President	Ursula von der Leyen
Preceded by	Federica Mogherini
High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
Incumbent
Assumed office 1 December 2019
Preceded by	Federica Mogherini
Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation
In office 7 June 2018 – 30 November 2019
Prime Minister	Pedro Sánchez
Preceded by	Alfonso Dastis (Foreign Affairs and Cooperation)
Succeeded by	Margarita Robles (acting)
President of the European Parliament
In office 20 July 2004 – 16 January 2007
Preceded by	Pat Cox
Succeeded by	Hans-Gert Pöttering
Minister of Public Works and Environment
In office 12 March 1991 – 6 May 1996
Prime Minister	Felipe González
Preceded by	Javier Sáenz de Cosculluela
Succeeded by	Rafael Arias-Salgado
Leader of the Opposition
In office 26 May 1998 – 14 May 1999
Prime Minister	José María Aznar
Preceded by	Joaquín Almunia
Succeeded by	Joaquín Almunia
Member of the European Parliament for Spain
In office 13 June 2004 – 7 June 2009
Member of the Congress of Deputies
In office 15 July 1986 – 2 April 2004
Constituency	Barcelona
Personal details
Born	Josep Borrell Fontelles (1947-04-24) 24 April 1947 (age 77) La Pobla de Segur, Spain
Citizenship	Spain Argentina (since 2019)
Political party	Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (since 1975)
Other political affiliations	Party of European Socialists
Spouse(s)	Carolina Mayeur (div.) Cristina Narbona ​ (m. 2018)​
Children	2
Education	Technical University of Madrid Complutense University Stanford University French Institute of Petroleum

Josep Borrell Fontelles (Western Catalan: [ʒuˈzɛb boˈreʎ fonˈteʎes]; born 24 April 1947) is a Spanish politician serving as High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy since 1 December 2019. A member of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), he served as President of the European Parliament from 2004 to 2007 and as Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation in the Government of Spain from 2018 to 2019.

Born and raised in the Catalan village of La Pobla de Segur, Borrell is an aeronautical engineer and economist by training as well as professor of mathematics. He entered politics in the 1970s as a member of the PSOE during Spain's transition to democracy, and went on to serve in several prominent positions during the governments of Felipe González, first within the Ministry of Economy and Finance as General Secretary for the Budget and Public Spending (1982–1984) and Secretary of State for Finance (1984–1991), then joining the Council of Ministers as Minister of Public Works and Transport (1991–1996). In the opposition after the 1996 election, Borrell unexpectedly won the PSOE primary in 1998 and became Leader of the Opposition and the designated prime ministerial candidate of the party until he resigned in 1999. He then switched to European politics, becoming a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) during the 2004–2009 legislative period and serving as President of the European Parliament for the first half of the term.

He returned to the Spanish Council of Ministers in June 2018, when he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation in the Sánchez government. In July 2019, Borrell was announced as the European Council's nominee to be appointed High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. He took office in December 2019.