Iris de Araújo, federal deputy, dies at 79 – 02/21/2023 – Power

Federal deputy and first lady of the state of Goiás Iris de Araújo Rezende died this Tuesday (21), in Goiânia, aged 79. She was married for more than 50 years to the governor of Goiás Iris Rezende, who died in 2021. Dona Iris, as she was called, leaves three children.

The advisory of the Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein said in a statement that Iris died as a result of the worsening of previous lung diseases.

One of the daughters wrote on the social network that Iris underwent surgery on Sunday (19) and her lung did not resist.

Iris has been First Lady of Goiânia on three occasions since the 1960s and First Lady of Goiás twice.

Affiliated to the PMDB (today MDB) since 1980, it made its debut in elections in the 1994 presidential race, when it was runner-up on the ticket headed by Orestes Quercia.

After that, on two occasions, in 2003 and 2006, he took over a seat in the Senate, as a substitute for Maguito Vilela.

In 2006, she was elected federal deputy for Goiás, being re-elected four years later.

Other than that, he presided over the regional directorate of Goiás of the MDB, from 1995 to 1998 and, temporarily, assumed the national direction of the acronym from March 2009 to January 2010.

Governor of Goiás, Ronaldo Caiado (União Brasil) declared three days of official mourning in the state. “Former Federal Deputy and former First Lady of Goiás, Dona Iris has built a trajectory marked, mainly, by the defense of social policies for the most vulnerable population. We were colleagues in the Federal Chamber and I testify that she exercised her mandates with courage and pride. Dona Iris was always a voice in defense of the people of Goiás”, he wrote on a social network.

Current president of the MDB, federal deputy Baleia Rossi also mourned the death. “Dona Íris has always had a strong presence in the social and cultural areas, and in the defense of democracy. Our condolences to her family, friends and the people of Goiás”, he declared.