Born and raised in Cabra, Spain, she attended the University of Seville and the University of Córdoba; she holds a doctorate in constitutional law from the latter institution. She was Regional Minister of Culture of Andalusia between 1996 and 2004. She also served between 2004 and 2007 as Minister of Culture in the government of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. From June 2017 to October 2021, she served as Secretary of Equality of the Socialist Party. She has published several books about feminism and gender equality.
Calvo took a leave of absence from being professor of constitutional law at the University of Córdoba. At the university, she was Secretary General and vice-dean of the Faculty of Law between 1990 and 1994.[2] From 1992 to 1996 she was secretary of the Andalusian Interuniversity Institute of Criminology.[3]
Political career
Calvo entered politics in the 1990s, when she was appointed Counselor of the Economic and Social Council of Córdoba between 1994 and 1996. She joined the Socialist Workers' Party in 1999.[3]
During her eight-years-term as Regional Minister of Culture, Calvo inaugurated the Museo Picasso Málaga of contemporary art in 2003, she negotiated the Andalusian Pact for the Book —a pact for supporting and promoting of reading— and she carried out important investments to reform churches, libraries and theatres —like Maestranza Theatre of Seville— as well as developing the Quality Plan for the Museums of Andalusia —which included the enlargement of the Archelogic Museum of Córdoba.
In 2004 Calvo debuted in the big screen with director José Luis García Sánchez with a short role in the movie María querida.[4][5]
In January 2004, she made the leap to national politics when the Secretary-General of the Socialist Workers' Party, Zapatero, created a "committee of notables" to advise him on his run to the premiership and appointed her a member of that committee.[6] In the Spanish general election in March 2004, she was elected to the Congress of Deputies, representing Córdoba.[7] She was subsequently appointed Minister of Culture in April by the new Prime Minister of Spain, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.[8]
As Minister of Culture, Calvo was an outspoken opponent of copyright piracy, and in 2005 her department spent around one million euros on a campaign to educate the public about the importance of intellectual property.[9] However, she was criticised by music industry officials for her statement that intellectual property is "not an absolute right".[10] Her decision to transfer documents from the General Archive of the Spanish Civil War to the Autonomous community of Catalonia was controversial.[11]
Because of the bad results of the previous year in the Spanish cinema, in 2007 Calvo presented a draft law that forces the movie theaters to shown European films (at least a 25%). This was rejected by most of the film industry and they went to strike on 18 June 2007, a strike followed by a 93% of the industry.[12] Minister Calvo was replaced in July 2007 and her successor approved this law with big modifications in late 2007.
She was one of the ministers with worst approval ratings and was replaced in July 2007 by César Antonio Molina.[13]
In the 2008 general election, Calvo was re-elected MP for Córdoba and was appointed Chair of the Congress Committee on Equality, as well as becoming a member of the Congress Committee on Defence and Committee on Comprehensive Disability Policies. She also presided over two subcommittees, one on abortion and other about gender violence.[15]
Calvo did not run for re-election in the 2011 general election due to her disagreement with the choice to put Rosa Aguilar at the top of the electoral list in Córdoba. She returned to her post as professor of constitutional law in the University of Córdoba.[16] She later gained the confidence of Secretary-General of the Socialist Party Pedro Sánchez and in 2017 he appointed her Secretary for Equality of the Socialist Workers' Party.[17]
Deputy Prime Minister
Deputy PM Calvo presiding a meeting about equality
During her term, Calvo focused on gender-based violence, especially in the wake of the La Manada rape case. In this so-called "wolf pack" case in which a group of men attacked an 18 year old woman, the Provincial Court of Navarre convicted the men of sexual abuse —nine years in prison— and not for sexual assault or rape —that would mean at least 20 years. The Court's decision provoked widespread social unrest.[20][21] Calvo proposed a reform of the Criminal Code to include explicit sexual consent.[22][23][24] After appealing the sentence, the High Court of Justice of Navarre confirmed the sentence of the provincial court.[25]
In November 2018, Calvo also proposed to amend to the Constitution to exclude some words that can be considered offensive for disabled people and to create a constitutional mandate that specifically protects disabled women.[26] In October 2019, she was an outspoken proponent of exhuming the remains of Francisco Franco from Valle de los Caídos.[27]
In June 2021, Calvo reaffirmed during an interview with La Vanguardia that the pardons of Catalonian independence politicians were near and asked the People's Party not to "confront Catalonia (because) the only alternative was normalizing relations and stop the tremendous confrontation provoked by independentism, the Spanish right and stabilize the situation".[32][33][34]
In 2022, a report was issued that claimed that President Sánchez offered Calvo the position of President of the Council of State after dismissing her as Vice President of the Government.[35]
Later career
When the Spanish parliament approved the creation of a sick leave for women suffering from incapacitating periods, becoming the first country in Europe to do so, Calvo notably was one of three PSOE lawmakers's who abstained from the vote in February 2023.[36]
Personal life
Calvo is the sister of the politician and writer José Calvo Poyato [es], former MP of the Parliament of Andalusia and former Mayor of Cabra.
At the age of 19, she married her childhood sweetheart, with whom she had a daughter at the age of 22.[37] She and her daughter share a love for rock music.[38] Subsequently, she married sociologist Manuel Pérez Yruela, former spokesperson of the Regional Government of Andalusia and researcher professor of the Institute of Social Studies of Andalusia. They divorced.[39] She has two granddaughters.[37]
On 25 March 2020, Calvo tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalized with a respiratory infection[40] during the first wave of the pandemic.[41][42][43]Público announced that Calvo had recovered from the illness in May 2020.[44]
2008: Favorite Daughter of Cabra, an honorary title given by the City Council of Cabra. She's the first woman to have it.[48]
2017: 2017 Progressive Women Award for her outstanding career as a feminist, as well as for her political and personal involvement in the fight for equality. Award given by the Spanish Federation of Progressive Women.[49]
2018: Ramón Rubial Award for the defense of socialist values.[50][51]
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